Federation of Uganda Basketball Associations (FUBA) president Nasser Sserunjogi has reiterated the urgent need for improved infrastructure to accelerate the growth of basketball in the country.
Speaking at the launch of The State of Ugandan Sport at Next Media Park on Friday morning, Sserunjogi identified inadequate facilities as the biggest hurdle facing the sport.
The event marked the official unveiling of The State of Ugandan Sport, a new initiative by NBS Sport aimed at driving collaboration, accountability, and qualitative growth across all sporting disciplines in Uganda.
The platform, unveiled by Next Media’s Head of Sports Broadcast Andrew Kabuura, is set to feature a series of national symposiums with the inaugural edition scheduled for June 17th and 18th.
The symposiums will include masterclasses, panel discussions, and interactive sessions with stakeholders to assess and shape the future of Ugandan sport.
In his remarks, Sserunjogi emphasized that the lack of standard basketball arenas is preventing Uganda from hosting continental and international tournaments.
“As basketball, our biggest challenge is infrastructure. We don’t have a stadium that meets international standards and, for that reason, we cannot host tournaments at the continental or global level,” he said.
“That is something that has to be addressed. Government has to address the issue of infrastructure.”
Currently, competitive basketball in Uganda is played in venues such as Lugogo Indoor Arena, YMCA Wandegeya, and Abja Park in Naalya among others, facilities that fall short of global standards.
Although the government, in partnership with Turkish firm Summa, announced plans in September 2023 to construct a state-of-the-art multipurpose indoor sports complex with a 15,000-seater capacity at the Lugogo Indoor Arena, no visible progress has been made on the ground.
Nonetheless, Sserunjogi acknowledged government efforts to include indoor sports facilities in other ongoing stadium projects such as Hoima City Stadium and Akii Bua Stadium in Lira.
“I would like to commend government for the efforts being made. The facilities currently under construction all include indoor stadiums that cater to sports like basketball,” he said.
“We believe the problem will be solved in the near future because we are beginning to see genuine interest from government in that area.”
