Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) has received Sports Development Grants under the Australian Sports Outreach Program, the Australian Embassy announced.
CAN has received 20,000 Australian dollars (approximately Rs 1.1 million) to promote the game of cricket at the grassroots level, particularly among school children, women and disabled people, stated a press statement issued by the Australian Embassy.
Thanking for the support, CAN president Binaya Raj Pandey said that the amount would be spent to promote such programs not under association’s main program. “We will support school programs, women and disabled, like deaf and blind cricketers,” Pandey said. “I hope that the support from the Australia continues.”
The Australian Ambassador to Nepal Graeme Lade said that he hoped that both grants would prove useful in advancing sporting capabilities in Nepal, especially in the areas of cricket and sport for people with disabilities. He also hoped that successful outcomes from these grants might hopefully lead to further grants.
The Australian government has been running the Sports Outreach Program, administered by the Australian Sports Commission, for a number of years, but until last year, it had essentially targeted Commonwealth countries.
Last year, the program was expanded beyond to include other countries, including Nepal.
The other grant of 10,000 Australian dollars (approximately Rs 550,000) has been provided to Diwakar Lal Amatya, the chairman of NASHF to support the translation, publication and distribution of an Australian manual on sports training for people with disabilities.