Cricket South Africa (CSA) has today held its 2022/23 Annual General Meeting (AGM).
The AGM was addressed by the Deputy Minister of Sport, Arts & Culture, Nocawe Mafu who said: “CSA has traversed a long journey from the days of unification. Therefore, CSA needs to take stock of the gains made and honestly reflect on its milestones. This goes for a reflection on the Transformation Indaba and the Social Justice and Nation-Building (SJN) initiative, important processes that should change the complexion of cricket in South Africa.
“As the Ministry, we applaud CSA for being the first organization to professionalize women’s cricket. While this is significant, there are pockets of those who are anti-transformation, who may not want to this initiative to succeed. However, this should not deter CSA from continuing with its transformation agenda. In fact, CSA should be transformational in its approach and escalate women, on and off the field. I congratulate CSA for being awarded the rights to organize the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup to be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia,” concluded Mafu.
In his opening remarks, CSA President, Rihan Richards acknowledged the significant milestones achieved by CSA since its last AGM. He however challenged that more needs to be done to achieve the vision set out by the organization. This, he said, begins with how CSA forges, maintains, and sustains leadership in the wake of fundamental shifts in the cricket landscape.
“Fundamental shifts in today’s sporting, specifically cricket environment, compel us to rethink the nature of our strategies, organization, and consequently, adaptive leadership. We need to constantly question the world around us. We are surrounded by all the answers; we simply need to work out what the questions are. We must embrace uncertainty and adopt new approaches if we are to chart a course amid today’s cricket changing conditions,” said Richards.
“We are at the cusp of creating a great legacy for cricket in South Africa. And it requires adaptive leadership. Generations after us will not judge us on what we did, but on what we did not do. As we reflect on the strides achieved thus far, let’s be open to taking a courageous leap. And it’s a leap, not a step! Let’s prepare the fortunes of cricket to withstand torrents of any time and deliver to those who have elected us a game full of glory, shine and prestige,” concluded Richards.
Presenting CSA organizational overview, Board Chairperson, Lawson Naidoo, said: “When the Board came into office two years ago, we were conscious of the challenges that plagued Cricket South Africa at the time, and we rolled up our sleeves and went to work.
“The implementation of the CSA Strategy underpinned by the Access, Inclusion and Excellence pillars is beginning to bear fruit. Although it is early stages, there are gains to report on. The recent launch of the professional domestic women’s league and the initiative to establish the SA20 league are testament to our appetite to grow the game of cricket in South Africa.
“We are immensely proud to have launched the Professional Domestic Women’s League a fortnight ago. A trailblazing initiative by CSA that follows being the 1st federation to establish a majority independent Board, and the first to offer equal match fees for women and men. We are setting the agenda and can be proud of these achievements. But this is just a start – much more needs to be done to achieve a level playing field for all cricketers, and to make cricket the sport of choice.
“CSA has indeed turned the corner. There are many wins to celebrate, and many more to come. While CSA recorded a financial loss in the year under review, I am pleased to say that these losses are substantially lower than anticipated,” concluded Naidoo.
The Chairperson of CSA’s Finance & Commercial Committee, Mark Rayner, presented the financial overview for the year ended 30 April 2023.
CSA reported a decrease in its losses over the past year with a R119 million loss for the year, in comparison to a loss of R198 million in the previous year. A cash balance at the end of the financial of R152 million was reported.
ELECTIONS
The following nominees were elected:
Non-independent Directors
- Thato Moagi
- Tebogo Siko
Independent Directors - John Burke
- Andrew Hudson
RETIREMENTS
Lead Independent Director, Advocate Steven Budlender SC, Independent Director, Advocate Norman Arendse SC and Non-independent Director, Daniel Govender.
NOTE: A copy of the CSA Integrated Report for 2022/23 is attached.
