Recognising the importance of sports, Secretary-General of the United Nation, Ban Ki-Moon said that, “Sport has become a world language, a common denominator that breaks down all the walls, all the barriers. It is a worldwide industry whose practices can have a widespread impact. Most of all, it is a powerful tool for progress and development.”
Sports play a vital role in socio-economic development in a country. Sports economy enables the economic development, while enhancing the standards of living of a country. The focus of this article is on how sports, recreation, and fitness can contribute to the economic development of a country in general before I draw specific insights on the Sri Lankan economy.
At a personal level, sports contribute to physical, social, and psychological development of person, and that provides a holistic effect to the wider “development” of society.
The United Nations recognise sports as an enabler that contributes to an economy from multiple fronts such as income generation from sports-related sales and services, boosting international trade, supporting business growth, enforcing entrepreneurship and job creation, enhancing the country’s reputation, transcending national differences, fostering universal values of fair play, mutual respect, friendship and improving health and social well-being.
The World Health Organization (WHO) stresses that the people’s health directly impacts the economic growth of a country. For example, health has a direct impact on the productivity, where an unhealthy labor force and community is a burden to a country’s economy causing an unnecessary wear out of funds allocated for health of a country.
Frequent illness of the labour force slows down the production with reduced efficiency and effectiveness. Conversely, an healthy workforce lessens the absenteeism and increase productivity through increased effectiveness and efficiency.
Most of the developed countries show a steady growth in the market size of sports. For example, in Australia the sports, fitness, and recreation sector is an extremely popular sector among consumers.
The employment level in the sports and recreation industry in Australia was doubled from 2001 to 2019. Similarly, the GDP share of the sports industry in China also grew steadily over the recent years. There are ample examples providing the use of sports as a tool towards economic development of a country that can be applicable to our country in the same way. Proper attention should be drawn towards the development of sports, recreation, and fitness as an industry contributing the Sri Lankan economy.
In the present situation, where the Covid-19 outbreak has negatively affected the country’s economy, finding novel solutions through adapting to the current innovative trends in the world would bring more fruitful positive changes to boost the economy.
Let us next discuss some positive changes this industry can bring to our country’s economy.
Sports, recreation, and fitness tourism culture
Hosting major sporting events (e.g., Cricket World Cup, SAG) were proved to bring economic growth through Government expenditure, foreign investment, new money consumption, and the introduction of future trade possibilities.
Mega sports events such as the four nation football tournament, international cricket matches, South Asian and Asian events, and so on, not only develop the country’s sports but immensely contributes to the economy.
For example, such mega-events attract Government investment towards developing the infrastructure and facilities around the area the event is hosted (e.g., stadiums, roads, information technology infrastructure) and many small to large scale business and employment opportunities (e.g., hotels, restaurants, taxi, laundry and so on) will be generated in facilitating the hosting of the event.
Long term, such events enhance the profile of the country, which then attracts tourists and business investments, including the long-term investments like public transport projects and other infrastructure development projects and creating new job opportunities.
One best example is promoting the traditional Ayurveda techniques and methods (e.g. Yoga, Panchakarma) under the recreation and wellness tourism industry. It is found that in average a wellness tourist spends 53 percent more than an average tourist in Sri Lanka (Jeevana, 2018).
Sports and physical culture
Increasing the local level of engagement of sports and physical activities is also important in developing a sports culture in a country. Accordingly, it is important to develop sports facilities in all the public areas, creating policies based on sports involvements and promoting sports and physical activity in both Government and the private sector are best strategies to develop the country’s economy.
Such policies and investments would ensure a healthy generation, which will then increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the workforce by increasing the overall productivity.
Increased productivity ensures increased revenue and more funds towards other development activities. Healthy public lowers the disease rates and reduces the excessive fund requirements from the Government to spend on people’s health, especially on non-communicable diseases.
Manufacturing sports equipment
On the other hand, manufacturing sports goods and equipment can be developed as profitable business opportunity. This would save the money of imports of equipment and more importantly, manufacturing high-quality equipment would bring foreign currency to the country through exports. Many job opportunities will also be created thereby reducing the unemployment rate.
- Build up the recreation centres
Moreover, establishing recreation centers to promote active health opportunities for people can be converted into a profitable economic opportunity. For example, promoting Aerobics, Zumba, and Yoga programs to increase the involvement in physical activities and create business opportunities. According to the National Recreation and Park Association in the USA, local park and recreation agencies generated more than US$154 billion in economic gains and provided employment opportunities to 1.1 million persons in 2019.
Human resources to run the industry
In developing an industry, specialised human resource is a key towards success. Currently the State universities in Sri Lanka produce more than 200 graduates annually from sports science, sports management, recreation, and physical education study sectors.
Most of them are compelled to choose a career in teaching or any other Government or private-sector job that are not directly related to their sports related degrees.
There is a huge gap in the job market for those graduates due to the underdeveloped sports and recreation industry in Sri Lanka.
These graduates could satisfy the need of human resources in developing the sports and recreation industry in Sri Lanka.
Developed economies such as Australia has nearly 100-degree programs that offer sports and recreation-related degrees and equally, they have many job opportunities created for those graduates. Drawing the proper attention of the relevant authorities in Sri Lanka on the development of this industry would bring a positive change to the economy.
The writer is a B.Sc. Sports Science and Management (USJ), M.Sc. (Reading) Clinical and Health Psychology (UK)