Scotiabank Kiddy Cricket programme launched … 210 schools to benefit
(Seated from right) Colin Stuart, Hazel Pyle-Lewis, Gervy Harry, Drubahadur, Jennifer Cipriani, Nicholas Fraser, Lorna Mohammad and Taaliba Speede. Standing are some students and teachers of St Pius and Redeemer primary schools. (Samuel Maughn photo)
(Seated from right) Colin Stuart, Hazel Pyle-Lewis, Gervy Harry, Drubahadur, Jennifer Cipriani, Nicholas Fraser, Lorna Mohammad and Taaliba Speede. Standing are some students and teachers of St Pius and Redeemer primary schools. (Samuel Maughn photo)

THE Scotiabank Kiddy cricket programme is a unique developmental tool, which has evolved over the past 17 years and has been proved to significantly enhance the latent athletic and academic skills of primary school pupils.Scotia’s Kiddy Cricket first bowled off in the year 1999 as a joint effort between the financial institution and now Cricket West Indies (CWI) formerly West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), to help foster skills and passion for the game among West Indian children.
The showpiece has grown among a number of Caribbean countries, and yesterday it continued here when the 2017 edition of the programme was officially launched at the Guyana Cricket Board’s (GCB) head office, located on Regent Street, Bourda, Georgetown.
The programme was re-launched in Guyana in 2014 after a two-year hiatus due to unforeseen circumstances, and this year some 210 primary schools countrywide will benefit from the programme.
In giving an overview of the programme, GCB’s Territorial Development Officer Colin Stuart, said the programme is set to include a number of new developmental aspects.
Apart from teaching the students the rudiments of the game, ‘Cricket is your game, learn it’ is one of the major features of the programme.
According to Stuart, the multifaceted approach to cricket development will see officials of the game going into different schools to deliver practical lectures with the main objective being to influence youngsters to get involved in the game while at the same time putting them in positions to gather a comprehensive understanding of the sport.
Stuart, the former Guyana and West Indies fast bowler, also said that there will be an international display as part of the Kiddy programme.
The display will see a number of youths being given the opportunity to engage each other during the lunch break of the One-Day International (ODI) between West Indies and Pakistan at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence.
Apart from the cricket tournament, Stuart confirmed the board’s intention to hold four summer camps, two in Demerara, and one each in Essequibo and Berbice.
Meanwhile, Marketing Manager of Scotiabank, Jennifer Cipriani, said her organisation remains committed to the growth and development of cricket locally as well as regionally.
She said the Kiddy Cricket Programme represents the bank’s commitment to the sport of cricket.
“Scotiabank continues to be proud of its almost 18-year association with Kiddy Cricket, one of our longest-running sponsorships in the Caribbean.
“As we embark on the 2017 Kiddy Cricket programme, it is my wish that the hundreds of Kiddy cricketers involved in this programme develop not only their cricketing skills but also their life-skills, giving us emotionally intelligent youths and adults who are equipped to make good choices,” Cipriani pointed out.
Speaking also at the launching was Assistant Chief Education Officer (Primary), Lorna Mohammad, who viewed the initiative as an important one, adding that the programme will assist students to choose a career path at an early age.
Gervy Harry, Admin Officer/Manager of the National Sports Commission, said the programme is there to bring out the potential hence those participating should take full advantage of it.
He stated that the administration is prepared to support not only the Kiddy Cricket programme, but sports in general.
Further, president of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Drubahadur, while praising the support and sponsorship of Scotiabank, called on the students and teachers to play the game in good spirit.
Yesterday’s launch was also attended by Nicholas Fraser of the Education Ministry’s Allied Arts Unit, Taaliba Speede of the Child Care and Protection Agency, Hazel Pyle-Lewis, representative of Guyana Teachers Union (GTU), along with students and teachers of St Pius and Redeemer primary schools.

 

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