I.D.B. Plans Coaches Training to Help Keep Violence Down

Amapolla Arimany

Two Inter-American Development Bank consultants are in Belize doing an assessment for Region One of Eastern Division in an effort to reduce violence through sports. The bank has provided funding for initial training of sports coaches in selected areas of Guatemala and Honduras, and is now hoping to introduce the program to Belize City’s south side. Consultant Amapolla Arimany spoke to News Five about the benefits of such a program.

Amapolla Arimany, I.D.B. Consultant

“What we are looking to do is hire and pay coaches for some sports – not all of them – but some sports in which Belizean kids can be good at; basketball, volleyball – because they are tall – and athletics, which is a sport some sports Belizean kids are good at, and some contact sports. We are only at the beginning of the process, trying to define what we are goping to do; but we already have a picture, more or less clear of what we are doing. We are still in the process of finding and interviewing the coaches that are going to be part of the project. The coaches are an important key part for this project because they are the leaders; they are the ones that are going to transmit the values. We have a good practice manual for the coaches, they will know what to do and we will train them and we will continuously train them.”

Further scouting will take place and after completing the training.  Arimany says it will be up to businesses to help fund the coaches’ programs, as in Guatemala, or the Government, as in Honduras.