MONITORING (SW) – Afghan-origin civil society activist and entrepreneur residing in Australia has been named as Multicultural Ambassador by cricket in the country.
Rita Anwari Sultani is the founding director of the Afghanistan-Australia Chamber of Commerce and Investment as well as the Women Empowerment and Leadership organization there.
Arriving in Australia in 1993, Rita has become from a migrant girl to a women’s rights champion here in the past three decades.
Rita has said that as an Afghan-Australian, she would be very keen to help Afghan cricketers living in Australia unite, train and get to higher levels.
“We have got strong and talented Afghan players living all across Australia and they are still playing in individual capacity so my efforts would be to listen to them and provide them a platform for support and growth,” she added.
Cricket Australia organization said in a statement that in this role, Rita Anwari would be striving to promote cricket among the bustling multicultural communities in the country. Her efforts have earned her international recognition and prestigious awards for dedication to empowering women and advocating for their rights.
According to data from Cricket Australia’s Multicultural Action Plan, some 18% of cricketers in Australia are of South Asian background. At the elite level, they only make up 4% of players contracted to state and territory teams.
“Cricket Australia wants to be a sport for everyone, and so we are really looking at increasing the opportunities for multicultural people across all aspects of cricket,” Sonya Thompson, Cricket Australia’s head of national development, told SBS News.
