The Junior Golf Foundation Kenya (JGF) has received a batch of 24,000 golf balls from DP World, the smart logistics provider and title partner of the DP World Tour.
The golf balls received are part of the DP World ‘second life’ container initiative that has been on a journey mission to collect used and unwanted golf balls to give back to grassroots golf and grow the game.
Sports Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ababu Namwamba said that this donation will help in transforming Kenya into one of the powerhouses of Sports in the world adding that it will play a part in the government’s implementation of the bottom-up policy which encompasses commercializing sports talents.
“We currently have Michael Karanga ranked 83rd amateur in the world and such initiatives from our partners like the DP World and the European Tour will help us have more Karanga’s in Kenya and take the continent and the World by storm,” said Namwamba.
The CS said that he is happy to note that these are some of the things that they agreed on with the CEO of the PGA European Tour Keith Pelley sometime in mid-November last year in Dubai during the DP World Tour Championship.
“I would like to pass my appreciation for support we have received as Kenya and we look forward to many more interactions and partnerships towards growing golf in the country,” said Namwamba.
The CS congratulated the four ladies who represented Kenya during the just concluded EACAAT championship in Kigali, Rwanda for finishing 2nd overall.
He added that out of the four, two of them Namely Ashley Awuor and Bianca Ngecu are juniors who are already representing the country at that top level.
“We are for sure on the right path and we encourage more partners like what NCBA Bank are doing with our juniors to onboard and see these over 180 juniors here today from as young as five years old fly the National flag high and even make a living out of it as professionals in the near future. Very well-done Regina and your team from Junior Golf Foundation,” said Namwamba while appreciating the efforts of Junior Golf Foundation President Regina Gachora..
The balls will be distributed to 30 golf clubs across the country to help in nurturing talent in Kenyan juniors starting from the age of 5 years old. JGF already has 47 coaches countrywide to teach juniors on how to play the sport and has also distributed golf club sets to clubs around the country as training tools for the juniors to learn the game.
Danny van Otterdijk, Chief Communications Officer at DP World said: “We are delighted to be able to support the Junior Golf Foundation in Kenya and other countries who have an interest in growing and popularizing the sport of golf from the grassroots all the way up to the professional level. This is just the beginning and we are proud that the second life container initiative is having an impact on communities around the world in our ambition to grow the game. A huge thanks to those at the Challenge Tour for supporting a project that will benefit thousands of junior golfers in Kenya.”
Maria Grandinetti-Milton, Head of Sustainability at the European Tour group, said: “We have been supporting the DP World second life container initiative for nearly two years now across the European Tour group’s various Tours, and this latest donation from the Challenge Tour will have a real impact in supporting young talent across Kenya. We want to make this great game more accessible, and the DP World programme is making great strides in doing just that across multiple continents. We already have a DP World Tour tournament in Kenya and this major donation could be a catalyst for helping more young Kenyan players tee it up in the professional ranks one day.”
On her part the Junior Golf Foundation President, Ms. Regina Gachora expressed her joy and appreciation for the kind gesture.
“These balls complete our junior training program full circle as now children will have access to golf balls, golf kits and well-trained coaches to grow the Sport. We will be implementing a program where we give balls to the golf clubs in exchange for giving free range balls to our juniors to play,” said Ms Gachora.
Over the course of the 2022 and 2023 DP World Tour season, DP World’s container has now collected over 230,000 golf balls, redistributing them and giving them a second life in grassroots golf. Most recently the container visited The Ryder Cup in Rome ahead of its final stop of the 2023 season at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
By Joseph Ng’ang’a
