The recent sad demise of the founder and one of the most formidable player Ms Hawa Ngulume has marked another good end of Handball sport in Tanzania.
Before her death Ms Hawa Ngulume was a handball player and administrator prior to her appointment as a member of the National Sports Council and later as a District Commissioner in various districts in the country.
Handball has a good historical background in Tanzania. Being one of the sports which has brought honors in the country was a much fancied team within East and Central Africa region.
Under a strong leadership of Martin Kemoma and a young dynamic man Joel Kajula the sky was their limit.
Both Kemoma and Kajula made Handball to have one of the finest programs in the country.
Apart from being played in the Army , Prisons and Police forces, handball was also played in schools in the country.
Names like Kitojo , Twalipo Norbert Karata and many more were order of the day as far as Handball was concerned .
Ezekiel Mwambalaswa who later became the national coach and Jamal Rwamboh were picked from the school programs.
Jamal Rwamboh is currently working with our Police forces and a good stake holder in TV sports programs shows.
Tanzania was never beaten in handball for nearly ten years under the leadership of Kemoma and Joel Kajula. It was during their era when formation of the East and Central Africa Handball confederation was formed
Despite of their departure in handball matters, still the handball management was one of best in the country under the leadership of Captain Sudi Omari who like Ms Hawa Ngulume passed away in a very unexpected manner.
Handball is currently under a deep siesta with no national or club championship in the offing.
However it needs very little efforts to re kindle the sport.
Currently Handball is being played in schools and Army places.
The just ended Inter Primary and Secondary schools competition in Kibaha saw Handball being played by most of the schools
This is a good and vibrant signage for the development of Hand ball in Tanzania.
This therefore needs our National Handball Federation TAHA to make another strategic planning on how to re vitalize the sport which marked a good development in the past.
Let us keep our fingers crossed and see Handball qualifying for the 2020 Olympics if not Rio 2016 Olympics.
Together we can let us play our part.
