The Director General of Sports in the Kurdistan Region, Sardar Ismail, revealed today, Tuesday, an anticipated government approach to restructure the youth and sports sectors by either unifying the two general directorates or establishing an independent authority to oversee the two sectors.
Ismail said in a statement followed by the News Video Agency that the Ministry of Youth and Sports in the region split in 2009 into two general directorates for sports and youth under the umbrella of the Ministry of Culture and Youth, explaining that the connection between the two sectors prompted the proposal of a new vision for their management.
He clarified that the government's approach is based on the outcomes of a workshop held under the supervision of the private office of the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, Masrour Barzani, due to the importance of the youth and sports sectors.
Regarding sports activity, Ismail pointed out that the region has 118 officially licensed sports clubs from the Ministry of Culture and Youth, confirming that their licenses are recognized by the federal government due to continuous communication with the Ministry of Youth and Sports in Baghdad.
He added that accurately determining the final number of athletes in the region is a difficult task, given the existence of 37 specialized sports federations and the continuous increase in the number of athletes and champions, which reflects the expansion of the sports practice base in various disciplines.