Gov't unveils plans to build on Beijing success
CMC
Friday, September 19, 2008
KINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC) - Sports Minister Olivia "Babsy" Grange has unveiled a myriad of plans aimed at further strengthening the sports infrastructure here and has called on the private sector to support the venture.
Speaking at the In-ternational Congress on Sports for Peace and Development, Grange identified several projects Government planned to launch, as the country sought to build on their success at the recent Beijing Olympics.
"Some of the big plans for the industry here in Jamaica, include the Caymanas Estate mega-sport development facility, to be undertaken by the Urban Development Corporation; a sport-knowledge Park and Caribbean Hall of Fame, to strengthen Jamaica's leadership position in the growing Caribbean and Latin American sport and cultural industries; the Faculty of Sport, which will emerge from the University of Technology; and the GC Foster College and the Montego Bay Community College axis," Grange explained.
"It is our expectation that the private sector will regard the projection of sport as making good business sense, and join with the Government in the development of this industry.
"And our success in Beijing, in fact, has generated a lot of interest from the private sector, and there are companies now lining up to have their brand identified with the successes."
Jamaica had their most successful Olympics ever at the 29th Olympiad in Beijing when they picked up 11 medals, including six gold.
Their performance was headlined by the heroics of sprinter Usain Bolt who arrested the world's attention by claiming the coveted sprint double en route to three gold medals.
Grange said studies indicated that in 2005, sports accounted for approximately 2.6 per cent of Jamaica's Gross Domestic Product and guaranteed approximately 2.2 per cent of jobs.
"Employment in this sector is of the order of 22,474 persons and wage contributions exceed $4.3 billion," Grange said.
"Many millions of dollars are also spent on sports sponsorship and advertising. Sports generate substantial revenues to government and provide more through indirect taxes."
Grange pointed out that the country's elite athletes generated as much as US$44.5 million of direct foreign exchange earnings annually, noting this was a pre-Olympics estimate.
"The successes there will of course have boosted the earning potential considerably," she noted.
Grange, who attended the recent Olympics, said her Ministry was in the process of developing a dynamic and effective sport policy for Jamaica and hoped to collaborate with their CARICOM partners, to "come up with a policy and a direction that will drive the development of sports in the Caribbean."
"We believe that sports has the potential to be one of Jamaica's leading industries, and this is the potential that we want to exploit," she asserted.
"The National Sports Industry policy, which we are formulating, seeks to position local sport to become a part of the international sport industry. The aim is that sport should represent 5.4 per cent of GDP by 2030."
