The Malawi Olympic Committee (MOC), in partnership with the Norwegian International Federation (NIF), on Wednesday organised a day-long workshop for sports associations and commissioners on safeguarding and competition manipulation in Lilongwe.
Representatives of all 21 associations affiliated to MOC attended the workshop, which was facilitated by NIF Africa safeguarding coordinator Malebo Radtladi-Nkagakille from Botswana.
Speaking during the opening ceremony, MOC Vice-President Major General Francis Kakhuta Banda said safeguarding and integrity are foundation pillars of the Olympic movement and cannot be compromised. He stressed that every athlete trains and competes in a safe environment free from abuse, harassment, exploitation, and discrimination, and that all competitions remain transparent, fair, and protected from corrupt practices such as match fixing and other forms of exploitation.
Kakhuta Banda declared: “There is no place for misconduct in sport. Not now, not ever. We must ensure our competitions remain credible and our athletes protected.”
On her part, Radtladi-Nkagakille said safeguarding is key for sports development in the country. She elaborated: “Safeguarding issues affect the development of sports in any country. It is the core of sports development. Athletes should feel safe in sports.”
She stated that the workshop would dwell on competition manipulation, anti-doping, environmental aspect, mental health issues, age-cheating and changing the identity of the athlete to manipulate the results. Radtladi-Nkagakille added that they want athletes to be taken care of and not just to use them to win medals.
She further emphasized the objective of the training: “This workshop equips sports leaders to build systems and ensure cultures where safeguarding and integrity are at the centre of everything we do.”
One of the participants, Asimenye Simwaka, who is an MOC commissioner for athletes, welcomed the training, saying it will equip administrators with knowledge on how to safeguard athletes. She concluded: “There are a lot of issues that athletes face in various sports disciplines that affect their performance and mental health. This training is, therefore, important and necessary as it will go a long way in protecting athletes.”
By Singayazi Kaminjolo, Nation