Namdia board chairman, Brian Eiseb says his company is ready to make a long-term commitment to Athletics Namibia (AN) so as to help young Namibians realise their dreams.

He said this during a N.dollars 400 000 sponsorship handover to AN in Windhoek on Thursday for their participation in the 22nd African Championships which will take place from 08 to 12 June 2022 in Mauritius.

Eiseb added that Namdia’s support to the young athletics is because they are the future of the country as they continue to yearn for opportunities to unleash their talents.

“I am encouraging Namdia and Athletics Namibia’s executives to think long term and sign a long-term memorandum of understanding to make sure that our diamonds work for our people. Our athletes need to go to these events at the level of their competitors,” Eiseb said.

He suggested that a five-year contract between the bodies would make it easy for the coaches to plan and prepare better.

He added that signing a long-term sponsorship deal between Namdia and AN will take pressure off the federation’s executive committee who always have to run around in the last minutes looking for funds.

Eiseb said Namdia remains committed to ploughing back in the communities in the most impactful way, and they discovered that athletics is one such way.

His views were echoed by Namdia Chief Executive Officer, Kennedy Hamutenya, who said Namibia’s natural resources should be used to improve the lives of the youth.

“As Namdia we want to make sure that every diamond from Namibia counts and every stone we dig from our land uplifts our people. Our youths are hungry because of lack of opportunities, Sports is one area where our youths have opportunities,” Hamutenya said.

Minister of Sport, Youth and National Service, Agnes Tjongarero paid tribute to Namdia saying through such partnerships, the athletes stand to benefit by taking sports development forward.

“The youth will get opportunities to excel in sports, the private sector and corporate Namibia are key stakeholders and partners in sport, and without their support, sports activities will be limited and constrained,” she said.

She added that the last few years have seen corporate Namibia stepping up and helping the government to support sports federations.

Tjongarero took the opportunity to remind federations of the importance of accountability, saying sponsors are usually scared by the lack of financial reports.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency