West Indies: Board knocked

The regional governing cricket body has been given the thumps-down in its capability to adequately manage certain aspects of the 2007 World Cup.

And Professor Hilary Beckles feels the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) needs assistance in dealing with the type of profits likely to be generated from the massive event.

Beckles made the observation at a discussion on the eve of the One-Day International between Pakistan and Zimbabwe here on Wednesday.

'The WICB cannot be left alone to run this World Cup,' he told the audience at the Cathedral Cultural Centre in the capital city.

'They don't have the expertise or The Management and I don't think that the public confidence is there to mobilise these revenues.'

A WICB official was on record as saying that the board was looking to generate about US$40 million, but Beckles argued that this was only in respect to what the board would deal with 'hands-on'.

He estimated that about US$900 million would be spent throughout the Caribbean during a competition that will attract the most teams (16) ever, since the first World Cup was staged in 1975.

'I don't think the board has ever had to deal with the volume of revenues that we are looking at for this World Cup,'he said.

His suggestion was that the Caribbean private sector, non-governmental organisations and regional bodies meet in a joint-venture partnership with the WICB to provide a corporate entity.

'We are looking at cultural globalisation and that is the kind of structure that is needed to maximise revenues and to secure the confidence of the public.'

The professor pointed to the example of the 1996 World Cup that was hosted by three countries divided on the political front, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The tournament was run by anewly-formed consortium, Philcom corporation, a joint-venture between the three governments and the private sector of the three countries and the end result was a significant profit.

Beckles also asked a pertinent question which was first raised by a member of the audience: 'How are we, the public, to be assured that the revenues would be accumulated explicitly for the benefit of cricket''

Beckles was also of the view that the region still needed further preparation in other areas as well.

'It is not about having systems in place to run this business,' he said.

'This society has to be culturally prepared for this World Cup and at the moment the society is not culturally prepared.'