The Kenya women’s national basketball team administrated by the Kenya Basketball Federation which represents Kenya in international competitions is currently in Dakar Senegal, for the FIBA Afrobasket. But what was thought to be an affair of unity and support and funding has turned out to be a cry for help by the team, asking the government together with the federation to flex their financial muscle.
In a video statement released together by the players, they have expressed their distress and the overbearing pressure on their expected performance yet the federation has totally ignored their welfare and failed to honor their end of the bargain.
“Kenya women senior basketball national women team representing our beloved country in the Afrobasket tournament. Our understanding is that the women’s commission is an extension of the women’s national team. You are our voice and we feel that we are not being heard. Right now we are experiencing very poor standards as we have only been paid Ksh 10000 for this tournament.
https://twitter.com/Teammorans/status/1160947860554289157?s=20
“We are being forced to play an international tournament with only ten players and one coach while being expected to perform at a high level which puts us at a disadvantage. Call to action for all women commission and all relevant parties we are asking that the leadership pushes the federation and the government to release our funds as per the budget which was sent immediately we qualified for the Afro basket tournament in Uganda. We understand the budget was $50 per day per player from the government and some more money from the federation,” Hilda Indasi read the statement on behalf of her teammates.
Apparently, KBF failed to get funding from the government as they were uncertainty over whether or not the team would travel for the tournament, their first since 2013, but then made the decision to send a smaller team to Dakar off their own coffers while waiting for the government’s funding, according to Secretary-general Peter Orero.
The team lost their first two matches of the tournament, going down to Mozambique and Cape Verde and are scheduled to play against top seeds Angola on Wednesday.
