Luanda - The board of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) is in Angola to establish partnerships with the state and private sectors, with the aim of extending and developing the sport in Africa.
The delegation led by the President of the institution, Amadou Gallo Fall, along with the executive director of the National Basketball Association (NBA) for Africa, Clare Akamanzi, arrived in Angolan capital, Luanda, on Monday.
Both took part on Wednesday morning in a round table with the national sports press, where they presented development projects for Angola, as well as for the entire African continent.
At the meeting, Clare Akamanzi said Angola was chosen due to its rich history in the sport and that the country is among the priorities to benefit from the NBA's basketball projects in Africa.
Angola ranks third among African countries and 32nd worldwide, Akamanzi said, underlining that their program includes meetings with the Angolan Basketball Federation, the Ministry of Youth and Sport and the national business community.
She announced that on Wednesday evening, a dinner conference would be held with more than 14 institutions from the most varied branches of the national business community to explain the strategy and objectives for Angolan basketball.
According to the head of NBA Africa, Angola has already benefited from a number of projects, having cited as an example “NBA junior”, which has ExxonMobil and Africell as partners aimed for young people.
Clare Akamanzi said that after Petro de Luanda won the BAL last May, the time was right to join Angola and help develop the sport.
In addition, Clare Akamanzi said that NBA Africa has planned to build 1,000 basketball courts for African communities, with Angola among the beneficiaries.
The implementation of these actions, however, will depend on the involvement of the government, the federation and businesspeople, indicating and providing spaces in the defined provinces. BSV/MC/DAN/AMP
