Deputy Minister of Sport: Budget cuts remain a thorny issue

The department has faced criticism for slashing the sports budget by R2 million, several federations, including Swimming South Africa, have expressed frustration over the reductions, saying the cuts are hampering their preparations for major international events such as the Olympic Games. 

Speaking to SABC Sport, Mabe confirmed that the ministry is currently engaging with different federations to find practical solutions to the funding challenges.

"With regards to budget cuts, it's a thorny issue that we are still discussing. We've been having one on one meetings with different federations, firstly to understand their programs and also to understand how the budget cuts have affected their day to day running but there's a plan to that,” Mabe said.

“You'd know that the minister's vision is to have a one stop shop when it comes to sports, so that people don't have to travel to different cities when they want to have contact with sports federations. So, it is also one step towards that."

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The 49-year-old deputy minister, who serves alongside Minister Gayton McKenzie, emphasized the importance of private sector involvement in supporting sports federations financially. 

Mabe said the government alone cannot sustain all sporting codes and called for stronger partnerships with corporate South Africa to ensure that athletes continue to thrive.

"But the second one is that we want to also say that as a government it is not possible for us to continue to carry sport but we want to aggressively challenge the private sector to come on board and contribute because without the private sector being on board, there's no way that we will win,” he added. 

“It is not sustainable and you know that when budgets are cut, the first department that they look into is sports, arts and culture. So, we have suffered from budget cuts for a very, very long time."