Karate gets P800k kick
Kalafhi Medical Center and BOKA strike partnership
The sports career of professional athletes is complimented and prolonged by quality health care, especially in full contact sports like karate, the Minister of Health and wellness, Dr Edwin Dikoloti has said.
The minister was officiating at the P 800 000 sponsorship launch agreement signing between Botswana Karate Association ( BOKA) and Kalafhi Medical Centre ( KMC) in Gaborone this week.
“We must applaud the decision by Kalafhi to avail their human resources to be present at all training places of our national teams. We shall forever be grateful for this gesture as it will go a long way in complementing government’s limited resources. This will help protect our athletes and prolong their careers in sports due to the availability of quality health care,” the minister said. Addressing members of the press, Dikoloti said promoting health and wellness remains a primary driver for health care providers and for Kalafhi medical services to have seen it fit to partner with BOKA is a welcome development. “The Botswana National Karate team is made up of athletes from different places around the country. I have also learnt that Kalafhi medical Center has one of its services being telemedicine, which will work very well to address the issue of locality.” Furthermore, Dikoloti said: “It is always heartbreaking to see some talents cut short because of injuries. I believe the presence of Kalafhi Medical Services personnel at all training places willtake away our fears. I am also excited to learn that within the agreement, Kalafhi will also sponsor a Wellness Day for BOKA.”
Dikoloti assured Kalafhi Medical Center of having made the right decision as Karate is one of the best performing sport codes in the country with a good record and reputation.“I wish to take this opportunity to request BOKA to put in place an effective sponsorship management plan to ensurethat all promises made to Kalafhi are met; any concerns are addressed before they get out of control for the benefit of both parties involved.”