FIBA confident of PNG investment

 By JACK AMI

THE Federation International Basketball Association (FIBA) Oceania executive director David Crocker is confident of investment in Papua New Guinea.

Crocker said FIBA Oceania’s strategy for the future was programmed in PNG as the first country in the Pacific besides the other 22 national federations.

He said FIBA would set the pacific benchmark in PNG, with its world-class and international facilities, before the programme was initiated in other countries.

The executive director said the FIBA Oceania partnership agreement for a period of three years with the PNG Sports Foundation and its chief executive officer Peter Tsimalili Jr was evidence of the confidence in a new era and beginning for basketball in the country.

“These things give me confidence to make an investment,” Crocker said. 

“You have the people, you have the facilities. 

“We are very pleased with the quality of executives that we will get to work with and those we have worked with for some time.

“These are all things that add up to a smart investment which to me, is a significant investment. 

“For me, the key thing that we are going to try and support here is giving legs, backs, arms, brains to support the very talented and very busy executive,” he said. 

“That’s what investment is about. 

“We are very unfortunate that when we come to the table, our strategy the whole time is to bring out the partners; we can’t do it alone. 

“I want to reinforce that as an organisation when we commit, we deliver. 

“We take partners with us and we commit our efforts and our resources to make sure that our objectives are delivered. 

“So here’s my delivery number one,” Crocker said. 

“I’ll be back over the coming months again to keep checking in to bring other partners to the table. 

“They are excited about conversations with new partners over the last few days who can help us continue to tell the story, to grow the story.

“We think we are at the very start of a very exciting project. 

“This is a very important project to FIBA; this is the only one in the world which is appearing and it’s here in Papua New Guinea. 

“It’s because of all those aspects — the people, the facilities, the talented executives, the support of the Government. 

“They are the reasons we are here,” he said.