In his state of the region address on Friday, Kunene Governor Marius Sheya said investing in the youth fosters a strong economic future, including the sports sector.

In line with youth sport and infrastructure development in the Kunene region, Cricket Namibia announced earlier this year that plans are underway to build a development centre in the Kunene region this year.

Outjo opened its first cricket facility last year, with 20 matches having been played since.

Kunene governor Marius Sheya emphasised the importance of educated and skilled youth and how sports initiatives are growing within the region.

”We introduced the Governor's Cup, which has been successfully hosted in Outjo for three consecutive years, and our final one this year will be hosted in Opuwo. We are equally bidding to host the Namibian Newspaper Cup in 2025 in Outjo. We have seen the successful hosting of the second Opuwo Mayoral Cup, with Khorixas and Outjo to follow as planned this year. We thus call upon local authorities to host and bid to host the National Sports Games, as it not only boosts the local economy but also creates platforms for development and a network for the people of these local areas,” he said.

Sheya further added that they have plans to turn Torra Bay into a modern sports and recreational coastal town in Namibia.

Despite his region being a hub for sporting events, Erongo Governor Neville Andre Iitope's state of the region address on Thursday failed to address any sporting developments or plans. Erongo Region is home to Namibia's only sport high-performance centre, the Dome, which continues to provide state-of-the-art facilities for various sport codes.

Another notable achievement that deserved a mention in the governor's speech was the return of the Blue Boys football club to the country's top-tier league in the coming season.