Cricket Uganda has achieved a significant milestone on the international stage after securing two Africa Region honours in the 2025 ICC Development Awards, earning places in the final global judging process.
The achievement highlights the governing body’s growing reputation for using cricket as a tool for social development, inclusion, public health, and community empowerment beyond the boundaries of competition.
The two award-winning initiatives advancing to the global stage are the Girls’ Schools Cricket Week in Gulu and the “Cricket Grannies” programme in Jinja.
The Girls’ Schools Cricket Week was recognised in the ICC Development Initiative of the Year category. Held in May 2025, the tournament marked the first time the prestigious national girls’ competition was staged in Northern Uganda. Sixteen schools participated in the event at the Northern Cricket Hub and Gulu High School, with Olila High School emerging as national champions.
The event was widely praised for expanding opportunities for young female cricketers while strengthening the sport’s footprint in a region historically underserved by major national competitions.
Meanwhile, the “Cricket Grannies” initiative received recognition in the Cricket 4 Good Social Impact Initiative of the Year category. Organised by Coach Aaron Kusaasira in October 2025, the programme brought together 56 elderly women from the Jinja community to participate in a friendly cricket tournament at Kivubuka Primary School Grounds.
Competing across four teams—Kusasira, Hope, Kivubuka, and Faith—the participants embraced the sport as a means of promoting physical activity, combating hypertension, and encouraging healthier lifestyles among older generations.
Cricket Uganda Development Manager Davis Turinawe said the decision to host the Girls’ Schools Cricket Week in Gulu was a strategic move aimed at breaking geographical barriers and expanding cricket’s development reach across the country.
“Taking a flagship national tournament to Gulu was a deliberate, strategic decision to break geographic barriers and redefine our development footprint. To see that courage validated on a global scale proves our pathway works. We aren’t just expanding the map for talent; we are demonstrating that our structures can spark sustainable growth and inclusion anywhere in the country,” Turinawe said.
Cricket Uganda Honorary Secretary Denis Musali described the awards as recognition of the broader social value cricket can deliver when implemented with a clear development vision.
“These continental awards underscore the profound societal equity that cricket carries when executed with vision. By combining innovative grassroots initiatives with broad digital visibility and international media partnerships, we have shifted the narrative of sports administration. This global recognition affirms that Ugandan cricket is not only growing the game, but also pioneering sport as a catalyst for deep social transformation,” Musali said.
Having secured regional honours, Cricket Uganda’s two entries will now be reviewed by an independent global panel comprising former international players, media representatives, and ICC stakeholders.
The final global winners of the 2025 ICC Development Awards are expected to be announced on ICC platforms in July.
