Permanent Secretary decries lack of sports facilities

Lack of sports facilities, expertise, neglect of sports in preference to academics are some of the factors hindering Government commitment to provide quality education and sports in the country.

The observation was made by the Permanent secretary Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Sports Dr. Nassali Lukwago at a stakeholders workshop aimed at developing a National Adolescent Girls Strategy (S4D).

The two-day workshop that started Tuesday at Hotel Africana is organized by the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Sports in conjunction with UNICEF.

In a speech read for her by the Acting Director of Basic and secondary Education Nsumba Lyazi, Nassali noted that Government's commitment to provide quality education had met with some hindrances.

"However, the sector has realized some gaps in provision of sports in education institutions. These include lack of a sports framework, lack of sports facilities, expertise and neglect of sports in preference to academics. This has an effect on the products of the schools that are robbed of holistic education," Nassali observed.

She enumerated Government's commitment as exemplified by the Physical Activity and Sports Bill, the lower Secondary Curriculum that has the Life Education Learning Area the scholarships for talented sportsmen and women at public universities and the support to schools and institutional games at national and regional levels.

UNICEF's head of communications Jaya Murthy presented data on the situation of adolescent girls in Uganda. He called on the participants to come up with a strategy that will change the mindset of the population especially in the rural areas towards adolescent girls, who in most cases were found vulnerable.

The consultative meeting also has officials from the ministry of Gender Labour and social Affairs, Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Local Government, National Council of Sports, sports federations and the media among others.