About a month after touring University of Malawi (Unima) basketball court to appreciate renovations works, National Bank of Malawi (NBM) Plc over the weekend inspected progress of the playing space at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (Luanar).
During the Mo626 College Basketball tournament launch in September last year, NBM committed to refurbishing Luanar and University of Malawi (Unima) basketball courts as a way of leaving a lasting legacy in the sports infrastructure development.
The Bank’s Accounts Relationship Manager Monica Zinyemba said the basketball court was in a sorry state prompting the Bank to intervene.
Zinyemba then expressed satisfaction with the progress of the works taking place at the facility.
“We thought it was safe for the students to be playing on a very modern court. It is supposed to be completed by January 25, and handovers will be done immediately after that so that students can start using it once they open the new semester,” said Zinyemba.
Director of Students Affairs at Luanar, Ronnie Mvula thanked NBM plc for coming to their rescue.
Mvula said the refurbished facility will encourage more students to join the sport and also ensure Luanar has a strong basketball team.
“Last year we had Tessam games in Lilongwe but we could not host any games here including basketball, because our facilities were not that good. So, the coming in of National Bank to renovate the Basketball Court is timely and welcome.”
“The renovation is in phases, the first one is about the court, then they will include the floodlights so games can be played even at night, but also they will provide stands for both sides of the court,” explained Mvula.
Students’ representative, Wesham Mwala Moyo said the coming in of the new court is a privilege for the basketball players.
“You can be great players but not having the right facilities can affect the outcome of how you play during game time,” said Mwala Moyo.
Mo626 College Basketball Ambassador Hayze Engola spiced up the inspection tour by interacting and giving out NBM-branded items to the players.
NBM is expected to pump K40 million into the Luanar basketball court renovation project.
