Govt applauds Airtel’s K70m youth football investment
Government has hailed Airtel Malawi Limited for investing K70 million ($155 556) towards youth football development through the Airtel Rising Stars tournament.
Principal Secretary II in the Ministry of Youth Development and Sports Joseph Mwandidya said this during the official launch of the 2015 Airtel Rising Stars (ARS) football competition at Salima Community Centre ground on Saturday.
“There can be no meaningful development without investing in the youth. Through the Airtel Rising Stars, you are nurturing talent for the senior national football team.
“These children will be future stars doing the country proud in continental and global tournaments and as government we are very appreciative,” said Mwandidya when he addressed the gathering which included district commissioner Blessings Nkhoma and Malawi National Council of Sports (MNCS) executive secretary George Jana.
The launch started with a grand parade led by Malawi Police Brass Band from Kamuzu Road to Salima Community ground, where there were a number of activities including a football match.
Airtel Malawi business manager for central zone Misheck Kavuta said the sponsorship was a sign of Airtel’s commitment towards development of sports and nation building.
“Sports enhances development as it keeps the youth away from bad behaviours that can destroy their careers. Sports is also a source of employment and so many athletes, including footballers are earning a lot of money from sports. With the ARS sponsorship, which is the biggest investment in youth soccer, the game of football will never be the same,” said Kavuta.
Malawi Schools Sports Association (Massa) vice-president SeveriaChalira expressed gratitude to Airtel for compensating the team which failed to travel to Gabon last year due to Ebola outbreak.
“Despite that the team did not make the trip you still went ahead to give each member K45 000. We are so grateful,” said Chalira.
After the speeches, there was a football match between Salima Select and Airtel Rising Stars (ARS) 4, which ended one-all. ARS 4 had a mixture of boys and girls from the 2014 squad that failed to travel to Gabon.
