ECCB Demonstrates Commitment to Development of Netball in ECCU

BASSETERRE St. Kitts, June 30th 2011 - The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) continues to demonstrate its commitment to the development of young minds through sports by sponsoring the OECS/ECCB Under-23 Netball Tournament since 1991.

This year’s tournament will be held in St Kitts and Nevis from 1 – 7 July.

Six teams will attempt to take the championship trophy from the Spice Girls of Grenada.  These are: Anguilla, The Commonwealth of Dominica, Nevis, St Kitts, Saint Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

All the matches will be played at the Pam Tyson Netball Complex, Warner Park.

The opening ceremony will be held on Saturday 2 July from 4:30 p.m.

The ECCB’s continued sponsorship of the OECS/ECCB Under-23 Netball Tournament over the past 20 years demonstrates its belief in the importance of sports to the social and physical development of the young women in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) and the potential of the competition to promote the Bank’s vision of regional integration.

In 1999, the ECCB incorporated a personal development session into the competition with the aim of enhancing the interpersonal and professional skills of the netballers.  The theme for this year’s session is “Guarding Your Financial Goals and Scoring Big Wins in Your Life”.  Ms Sybil Welsh, Adviser, Corporate Relations Department, ECCB will engage the young netballers in a discussion on financial planning using netball metaphors and analogies.

The OECS/ECCB Under 23 Netball Tournament is rotated annually among the eight ECCB member countries.  Each year, the ECCB collaborates with the OECS Sports Desk in Saint Lucia to stage the tournament in association with the designated host netball association.