The withdrawal of support for teams by the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) has been a drawback for the Botswana Volleyball Federation (BVF).
BVF president, Daniel Molaodi said they suffered setback as affected teams pulled out of the league.
He explained that the women’s league was the most affected after the BDF and Botswana Prisons decided to sponsor only one team from each organisation.
BDF withdrew their support for teams in Selebi-Phikwe and Francistown. Prisons Department, on the other hand, cut financial support to their two women’s teams in Lobatse and Gaborone.
Molaodi said this had implications on the women’s league after the teams withdrew from the competition. But, he said the men’s league still has sufficient numbers.
As a way forward, BVF is in the process of assisting the affected clubs to negotiate for sponsorships as community teams.
“Consultations were not so broad. We never had a chance to negotiate. It was too abrupt for us.
“We are hopeful that going forward we will find ways to resuscitate the teams. You can not have a town like Selebi-Phikwe without a volleyball team,” said Molaodi.
He said they are intending to engage other stakeholders including local authorities. He added that teams in other countries survive because of the solid backing from parastatals or companies.
“This is not the case in our country. We want to explore that route. We know it is not easy because that comes with a cost for the company.
“We want to believe there are those with social responsibilities,” said the BVF president.
Meanwhile, Molaodi said this year’s league is likely to kick off between March and April. He said the transfer window is open and clubs can register new players. “The process must finalise before the league starts,” advised the official.
