Sport was encouraged and developed in the first 100 days, by:

• funding new sports facilities in rural areas
• creating and providing equipment for school cluster sports leagues
• developing sports fields at disadvantaged schools
• restructuring and building capacity in Sports Councils

People living in rural areas generally have access to fewer sports facilities than urban dwellers - but perhaps not for long in the Western Cape.

An R11m programme to upgrade or build sports facilities in ten, mostly rural local authorities of the Western Cape, was launched by the Premier and the Minister for Cultural Affairs, Sport and Recreation, Mr Chris Stali, in August 2004.

Celebrations at the sod-turning ceremony in Kayamandi

The Building for Sport and Recreation Programme (BSRP) allocated R9.3 million to the project, while a further R1.7 million comes from the provincial budget allocation. The BSRP is a poverty alleviation programme of Sport and Recreation South Africa aimed at creating facilities for disadvantaged communities, while also providing short-term construction employment and long-term employment associated with the new sports facilities created.

Transfer payments to the selected municipalities have been concluded and construction is likely to begin at the end of September 2004. As many as 28 facilities in ten municipalities will be created or improved. The municipalities which have received this funding are:

• Beaufort West Municipality (Rustedene and Nelspoort) R1.6 million for netball court, ablution blocks and new sports complex and rugby field
• Kannaland Municipality (Van Wyksdorp, Calitzdorp and Ladismisth) R1.25 million for development of rugby field, completion of multi-purpose sport field and renovation of swimming pools
• Laingsburg Municipality (Vleiland and Matjiesfontein) R1 million
• Central Karoo (Murrayburg) R0.35 million for completion of sports complex
• Knysna Municipality R0.5 million for completion of multi-purpose sports complex
• Mossel Bay Municipality (Brandwatch) R0.65 million for new sports complex
• Stellensbosch (Kayamnandi) R2 million for new sports complex
• City of Cape Town (Maccassar) R1 million for new sport complex
• Prince Albert-Klaarstroom R0.3 million for facilities lighting and security
• Swartland-Kalbakraal R0.6 million for new multi-purpose sport facility and field irrigation.

When sport fixtures are set between disadvantaged schools which are located far away from each other, many schools simply choose not to compete due to transport problems. As a result, young sports players suffer a lack of competition.

"Cluster sport leagues" have therefore been piloted in four disadvantaged areas to bring schools in the same area together, so that appropriate fixtures can be set up between cluster schools, to revive inter-school competition. Facilities, equipment, training and coaching are also shared among schools in the cluster system.

The cluster league system has been piloted at Hanover Park, Bonteheuwel, Gugulethu, Nyanga and Phillippi, where rugby, netball, soccer and chess are successfully being played in the league system. The current winter cluster sport league fixtures are scheduled to finish by the end of September so as not to interrupt school exams.

Sports equipment worth more than R500,000 was also handed over to cluster schools by Minister Stali in July 2004. The equipment was handed over to cluster committees rather than individual schools to ensure more children have use of the equipment.

The sports equipment included basket balls, cricket bats and balls, volley balls, hockey kit, soccer and rugby balls, training bibs, chess sets, and table tennis equipment. A further tender for additional equipment worth R360,000 will be put out in September 2004.

Without a playing field, schools cannot offer many outdoor sports. Seven disadvantaged schools were therefore given R184,000 each in August 2004 for the upgrading of playing fields, including the costs of landscaping, laying of grass and borehole irrigation. The schools were selected on the basis of need - some currently have no playing fields at all.

The project is a partnership between the Department of Cultural Affairs, Sport and Recreation, the Safer Schools Project, the Department of Community Safety and the Multi-Agency Delivery Action Mechanism (MADAM), which brings different agencies together in combating crime. The schools which received this funding at a ceremony in Mitchell's Plain are:

• AZ Berman Primary, Mitchell's Plain
• Luhlaza High, Khayelitsha
• Isalathiso Primary, Mossel Bay
• Dr Van der Ross, Belhar
• Swartberg High, Caledon
• P.W. De Bruin Primary, West Coast, Winelands
• Cathkin High, Heideveld

Seven schools rather than the planned ten schools were selected due to funding constraints.

Two interventions were made regarding Sports Councils in the first 100 days - a "Dispute Resolution Indaba" and a "Soccer Summit".

The Dispute Resolution Indaba was held in July 2004. As many as 170 delegates from 40 Western Cape sports federations participated.

The Indaba was convened to find ways of lessening the administration burden on courts of sports disputes and improving capacity in sport federations. High Court Judge Deon Van Zyl and Advocate Alex Abercrombie shared their legal expertise in the fields of sport law and dispute resolution.

The Indaba led to the launch of The Western Cape Dispute Resolution Forum. The Forum should be functional by April 2005, once the appropriate legislation has been passed. The Department of Cultural Affairs, Sport and Recreation is currently considering nominations for members of the Forum. A transformation and dispute unit within the Department will provide administrative support to the Dispute Resolution Forum.

"The Road to 2010", Soccer Summit

The Indaba was closely followed by the "Soccer Summit", subtitled "The Road to 2010", held in August 2004. The summit was aimed at beginning the process of unblocking the impediments affecting the growth and development of soccer in the Western Cape.

The summit was attended by soccer administrators from various bodies, including officials from the South African Football Association (SAFA) Provincial and National Executive. Delegates adopted a strategy to remove the stumbling blocks that retard the development and growth of soccer. This strategy included commitments to:

• Strengthen and formalise relationships between SAFA, the United Schools Sports Association of South Africa (USSASA) and the South African Students Sports Union (SASSU).
• Develop programmes to ensure capable leadership.
• Resolve relationship problems with local authorities and clubs.
• Focus on unity.
• Establish a provincial organizing committee to focus on issues of development, growth and governance.
• Hold a strategic planning session to develop a plan towards 2010.

These four deposits were all promised by the Premier, and have been delivered within the first 100 days. The fifth promise, that of new mass-based sport recreation programmes in four nodal areas, is a long-term project which is still under development by the Department.