The National Council of Sports (NCS) has warned that sports federations and associations that fail to meet registration requirements under the National Sports Act 2023 as amended will not get government funding. While addressing the media on Friday, a tough-talking NCS General Secretary, Dr. Bernard Patrick Ogwel noted that the federations and associations have only five months to comply.
In December last year, the government through NCS resolved to extend a five-month grace period to sports federations and associations that had failed to meet the statutory requirements to comply with the new sports Act.
“Failure to attain full compliance within the stipulated period will result in one; automatic rejection of the application for registration and two; revocation of certificate of recognition in accordance with the Act and regulations,” noted Ogwel.
The new sports Act 2023 as amended requires all national sports federations and associations to re-register with NCS with the five-month grace period ending on June 30th.
“These governance and internal disputes have affected sports and we continue to have these challenges arising out of leadership gaps,” observed Ogwel.
The major challenge to federations and associations is the mandatory 75% and 60% national coverage respectively.
Eddie Gomya, the Uganda Zurkhaney association president, Paul Wasike, the Pool association of Uganda and Dominic Otucet, the Uganda athletics president says that they are trying their best to comply with the law within the given ultimatum.
Ogwel highlighted delayed and incomplete submissions, governance shortcomings, and internal disputes as some of the shortfalls in the registration process.
“The minister has already made it clear. Our target effective financial year 2026/27, if you have not complied and that is in five months, by June 30th, we shall have a gazette on federations who will be funded by the government. If you fall short of any of this, you cannot qualify to be a national association or federation,” Ogwel highlighted.
Out of the 51 sports federations and associations before one new sports Act, only 45 applied for re-registration pending NCS approval.
