ADDRESS BY THE MINISTER OF SPORT AND RECREATION, NGCONDE BALFOUR, AT THE GCIS MEDIA BRIEFING WEEK, 10 February 2000

The African Century is here. The time for Africa to be reckoned as a major force in global politics, economics, industry, education and sport have dawned. The time has come for us, as Africans, to take our rightful seat on the world stage and as our President, Thabo Mbeki, proclaimed and I quote," We should devote the Year 2000 that is upon us, to do everything that needs to be done to ensure that by its end, we see our entire Continent at the ready to join in a powerful movement of the peoples of Africa for the realisation of Africa's century".

For us as Africans, and more especially South Africans, the challenges that confront us as far as sport and recreation are concerned, are, to say the least, daunting but exciting.

Not many South Africans are aware of this but we hold the Presidency of the Supreme Council for Sport in Africa. This body, constituted with the purpose of streamlining and uniting African sport, will undoubtedly play a significant role in attaining our goals of a united African Continent and the re-awakening of the African dream. As South Africans, our role will be immense. It includes sending athletes who will make Africa proud, to the Sydney Olympic Games later this year. Therefore, we will leave no stone unturned in our quest to assist our athletes and teams to prepare adequately for the Games.

On Thursday 9 March 2000, the anxiously awaited FIFA Technical Inspection Tour will commence. We are confident that our Bid is solid and technically sound. Furthermore, government and all South Africans are steadfast in their support of the Bid. Our President stated on Friday during his State of the Nation Address that the 2006 Soccer World Cup should take place in Africa and that our country has all the facilities and infra-structure to stage it here as the representatives of Africa. During the next few weeks, extensive work will be done in our cities and towns around the country to popularise an already visible and well-known campaign. We call on all our cities, towns and villages to come out in mass support of the Bid. This is the country's Bid. We need to embrace it and indicate to the world that we are ready. South Africa has shown that we have the capacity to stage world events as evidenced by the Rugby World Cup of 1995, the All-Africa Games and the Cricket World Cup which we are hosting in 2003.

Bidding for the Games is of great importance not only for South Africa but indeed for Africa. Let the world and our competitors know we are ready.

The impact of events such as the Soccer and Cricket World Cups on the economy of our country should never be under-estimated. The time has arrived for us to re-assess the contribution which sport could have on the daily lives of ordinary South Africans. We have witnessed the unifying force which sport exercised in our early years of democracy. We now need to exploit the economic and socials advantages which sport can provide.

It is true that we still experience cases of racism in sport, as we do in other spheres of life. The challenge is how to address such prejudices. The Ministry and the Department of Sport and Recreation took the lead last year already when he hosted a national conference to address racism in sport. It is noteworthy that rugby will shortly be hosting their own indaba to address racism in rugby. It is an indication that South Africans are prepared and willing to face the challenges they encounter. There is no denying that vestiges of racism in sport still remain as a legacy of our past. There is a perception that among coaches, selectors and even players there is a reluctance to embrace transformation in sport and this is manifested in their approach to especially team selections. Such blatant racism by a small group will be eradicated as there is absolute no place for such individuals in sport.

The process of transformation in sport is on the roll and the burning issue of representivity in all our teams, from provincial to international level, is rapidly being addressed with the commitment of our Federations.

The South African Sports Commission, which is the sum total of a part of the Department of Sport and Recreation and the NSC, will serve as the implementation arm of our sports movement and will soon have its CEO in place. I am confident that by the beginning of April the Commission would be fully functional. I believe that once we have shed all the teething problems, we will have a statutory sports body that will expedite the growth of South African sport in an unprecedented way.

Soon, I will table a third amendment to the South African Sports Commission Act that will effectively streamline the operations of the Commission.

Other legislation I intend to introduce includes an International Sport Relations Bill, as well as an overhaul of the Boxing and Wrestling Control Act of 1954 to bring it in line with the equity legislation, as well as ensuring it is in tandem with the Constitution of our country.

I firmly believe that all South Africans should have reasonable access to the broadcasting of national sporting events. Ways and means are being sought with all broadcasters to reach agreement on how best to ensure accessibility to sporting events, which attract major public interest. It is not good enough that the nation be denied accessibility to a major event which could be considered of national importance. The Broadcasting Act of 1999 is very clear on the issue of total exclusivity of national sporting events by any single pay-channel.

Yes, South African sport still has a long way to go to achieving its ultimate impact and possibilities. Yet, issues such as niggling problem areas in boxing, soccer and cricket, should not be seen as dead-ends, although some of our detractors would like to think so.

We still face many other challenges which include greater attention to indigenous sport, the growth of sport in rural communities and the role of sport in assisting to address the issue of crime and the regeneration of our urban areas through the development of physical infrastructure as well as people development.

The piece of legislation dealing with equality, brings into sharp focus the role of women and the disabled in sport and recreation. It is a high-priority area to ensure not only the participation of women and the disabled in sport and recreation on an equal footing but also to ensure that they achieve the same levels of international exposure as men and able-bodied sportspersons.

The current year promises to be a great start to the new century for Africa and South Africa, in particular. We are now going beyond "Getting our Nation to Play", which we launched in 1994 with the start of our new democracy. We are now in the phase of spelling out to the world in concrete terms, that our time has come.


Ngconde Balfour
Minister of Sport And Recreation
10 February 2000