ADAK board chairman Daniel Makdwallo. [Stafford Ondego]
Kenyan athletics’ battle against doping has suffered a serious blow which could result in it being banned from international competitions due to budget cuts that have halted all testing, its anti-doping agency said yesterday.
The Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya says it was allocated only 20 million shillings ($5,400) to run day-to-day programmes for the financial year starting in July -- far below the expected 288 million shillings ($1,457,000).
The programme was one of the victims of large-scale budget cuts imposed by the government after it was forced to scrap a tax bill that triggered massive protests in June.
“This move has grounded the agency, and we are not able to fulfil our obligations, hence risking non-compliance to the World Anti-Doping Code,” ADAK board chief Daniel Makdwallo told reporters in Nairobi.