Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed has expressed her gratitude to various betting organisations for remitting Sh5 million to boost sportsmen and women during the coronavirus pandemic.
The boost comes weeks after National Super League sponsors Betika parted with Sh 15 million in support of the ministry's plan to cushion vulnerable sportsmen against the effects brought by the pandemic.
Amina said the finances will be disbursed soon after identifying and vetting of the recipients.
She called on sports federations to present accurate data of the affected athletes with those who have featured for the national teams and do not have an alternative source of income as the priority.
“On behalf of the ministry, I wish to sincerely thank our sports partners for their contribution at this very crucial time and for other essential interventions undertaken by the firms individually. The Ministry will disburse these funds as soon as the process of identification and vetting in collaboration is done," she said
"We will prioritise athletes who do not have any other source of income, those signed up with our national teams and are active Team Kenya players. We will, however, continue to broaden the support base to other athletes as we mobilize more resources. I urge the sports federations to urgently to provide accurate data in order to ensure this intervention reaches intended persons as effectively as possible,” she added.
Her sentiments were echoed by the Principal Secretary, Joe Okudo, who appealed to other well-wishers to come on board and support sportsmen navigate through the murky waters.
“I continue to call upon other sports stakeholders to come on board and support our greatest Kenyan ambassadors during this challenging period,” he said.
Meanwhile, the chairperson of the Sports Betting Firms Covid-19 Stimulus Initiative and Betway CEO Leon Kiptum thanked the Ministry for its timely involvement to cushion athletes for the economic shocks of the pandemic.
“We are glad to plug into this noble course to alleviate the suffering of our sportsmen during these unprecedented times. We hope to partner with the ministry in many other sports programs in the future," he said.