Sports Economic Impact Assessment To Be Undertaken
by admin | Jun 30, 2009 | Events
Minister of Sports, Dr. Esther Byer Suckoo, addressing the audience at the Eastern Caribbean Kickboxing Network Championship at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
Government will undertake an Economic Impact Assessment to find out the true value of sports to Barbados' economy.
This disclosure has come from Minister of Sports, Dr. Esther Byer Suckoo, who said her Ministry would have this evaluation done to help economists better understand the effect of sports.
She made the comments last evening at the opening of the Eastern Caribbean Kickboxing Network Championship at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
Dr. Byer Suckoo told the gathering that Government was developing a National Sports Policy and Strategic Plan, which would facilitate the propulsion of Barbadian sports. She added that a Facilities Audit was also under way.
"There is a need for us to update our facilities and provide many of our sporting organisations with bases. But, before we undertake that exercise, we thought it was necessary to do an audit of all those facilities that are available across the island, whether they be for local, national, regional or international events," she explained.
Dr. Byer Suckoo said her Ministry recognised the value of martial arts and the role it played in the players' personal development. She stressed that Government was committed to building the capacity of sporting organisations to deliver programmes of improved quality.
"When one reflects on the results that the country has been able to achieve, one has to be amazed, considering the amount of resources and their mode of input over the years," she stated.
The Minister commended the martial arts group, noting that the creation of the Eastern Caribbean Kickboxing Union was testament to the fact that it understood the importance of maximising its investments over the years. She said she was pleased the local martial arts fraternity was allied to a professional organisation which could benefit the members.
saustin@barbados.gov.bb