Basketball in Africa

To commemorate the end of this long-term basketball project, an official handing- over of basketball equipment took place on 15 of October at the Basketball Artists School in Katutura.
In attendance were among others Dr. Vetumbuavi Veii, acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture, George Simataa, president of the Namibian Basketball Federation (NBF), Frank Albin, basketball expert with the project and the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany in Namibia, Onno Hückmann.
Ambassador Hückmann praised the success of the project and thanked the German basketball expert Frank Albin for his tireless work.
He underlined how the project was able to significantly increase the number of involved children, coaches and teachers in basketball. Thanks to the programme, the number of primary school children playing basketball increased from roughly 200 to 1000, and the number of teachers and trainers increased from about 20 to 100.
The quality of training and the federation structures are of a more solid nature today than they were four years ago. Basketball courts were established in numerous locations, the regions were equipped with materials and several tournaments and competitions were initiated.
The basketball equipment donated at the event via the Federal Foreign Office of Germany and the German Olympic Sports Confederation is valued at roughly N$ 250 000 and includes 500 basketballs, electronic score boards, office equipment, cones, whistles, stop watches, rims and backboards among others.
Additionally, Ambassador Hückmann highlighted the success of the Basketball Artists School, a sustainable pilot project which combines high-quality youth basketball with social aspects such as education and life skills.
In August this year, five girls from the Basketball Artists School were part of the Namibian U17 squad that won the silver medal in the Confederation of School Sport Associations of Southern Africa (COSSASA) games. Frank Albin will continue his engagement at the Basketball Artists School in future on a voluntary basis.
Children of the Basketball Artists School had the opportunity to demonstrate their basketball skills and local singers Linda and Slammer provided musical entertainment