Kneeling before me won't change anything – State Minister Ogwang responds to sports federations about government funding

Ugandan sports federations are voicing their concerns over insufficient government funding, with the recent plea from the Uganda Baseball Association serving as a stark example.

A video circulated on social media on 14th October showing Felix Akuuye, President of the Uganda Baseball Association, kneeling before State Minister Peter Ogwang.

He implored the minister to provide financial support in the form of air tickets for the team's participation in the upcoming baseball world cup in Japan.

Responding to this plea, Minister Ogwang referred to a tweet by Uganda Boxing Federation president Moses Muhangi.

"While I deeply sympathized with the President of the Uganda Baseball Association, and I indeed understand the current fiscal challenges the country is facing, the act of kneeling won't alter the existing financial constraints,” Ogwang said on his X handle.

"Every Federation has been allocated a specific budget. Just recently, funds for the 2nd Quarter were released by the Ministry of Finance, benefiting every federation, albeit the amounts might be seen as inadequate.”

He further explained: “We must operate within these set budgets. It's a reality that the Government is working with a fixed budget facing financial shortfalls.”

“These shortfalls restrict any additional expenditure outside the pre-established plans for the federations. Regrettably, there's no immediate alternative source of funding for the event in Japan."

The issue of government funding distribution has been contentious. State Minister Ogwang is facing increasing scrutiny from several sports federations unhappy with the funding levels.

For instance, the local football governing body, FUFA, reportedly receives a significant portion, amounting to approximately UGX17B annually.

Currently, Uganda boasts 52 active sports federations, their events span throughout the year and are overseen by the National Council of Sports.