Barbados Defence Force Sports Programme May Return Following Minister's Positive Comments

The Barbados Defence Force (BDF) sports programme, which was discontinued in 2018 due to funding challenges, may soon be reinstated.

Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment Charles Griffith hinted at the possibility during a tour of Haggatt Hall, St Michael on Monday.

Griffith’s comments came in response to BDF Chief of Staff Commodore Errington Shurland, who expressed a desire to see the programme revived during the force’s 45th anniversary celebrations on Sunday. Shurland, who was endorsing an appeal by Reverend Dr Adrian Smith for a revival of the programme earlier in his sermon, highlighted the programme’s past successes, noting that it played a crucial role in strengthening Barbados’ football and cricket teams.

“I am fully in support of restarting the BDF programme. I think we would have seen the benefits of that initiative,” Griffith stated. “What is required now is for us to sit down and to plan and see how best that we can move forward in terms of restarting the BDF programme because it will benefit the disciplines that are involved in the process.”

During the anniversary service held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Shurland remarked, “When I assumed office on the first of September [2021], one of my objectives was to revitalise the sports programme. Do you know that Barbados’ football was never at its strongest until it was with the sports programme? Do you know that the Barbados cricket team won back-to-back tournaments when they trained with the Barbados Defence Force Sports Programme? And if you are going to be very serious about sports, you have to bring some discipline to it.”

Established in 1990, the BDF sports programme included disciplines such as cricket, football, boxing, table tennis, and track and field. The programme required approximately $1.9 million in annual funding, which was provided by the central government.

In September 2018, it was announced that the programme would be discontinued due to financial constraints. However, the BDF clarified that the programme would be incorporated into its budget, asserting that it had not been abolished.

(SZB)