Sports

Nigeria Customs Service Pledges To Support NSC To Actualize Its Mandate

Published

2 years ago

January 28, 2025

The Gleamer

…Donates Buses to Commission

…As Nigeria Ready To Host African Women’s Volleyball Championship

Joel Ajayi

The sports loving Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service Bashir Adewale Adeniyi has assured the National Sports Commission that the service will do everything possible best to assit commission in actualize its mandate for the overall development of sports in the country.
He gave this assurance on Monday in Abuja during a courtesy visit to the NSC at Moshood Abiola National Stadium saying that the glory day of sports is back to us in Nigeria.
According to him, we want to use the opportunity to put on record on number of things, first to congratulate Sports Commission Chairman Malam Shehu Dikkoof Customs, it’s a right step in the right direction and that is where for the long time we have tested and trusted person which is Shehu Dikko, sports is in save hand.
“We will do our best to assist commission to actualize its mandate. NCS is solidily behind you for the overall development of sports Nigeria ,”

He hinted that, Nigeria will host the rest of Africa in the 2025 African Women’s Volleyball Inter-Cub Competition in Abuja from 1st to 14th April, 2025.

The Comptroller General assured that the Nigeria Customs Service women’s team – the only Nigerian team at the championship aims at hosting to win.

“Sports is not alternative business to NCS because our officers must posses the attributes of a good athlete before he can succeed. After so much efforts, Nigeria has been given the opportunity to host the 2025 African Women’s Volleyball Inter-Cub Competition from 1st to 14th April, 2025. This will be orgainsed in conjunction with the Nigeria Volleyball Federation. Nigeria competed with Egypt, Tanzania and other before we were given the nod to host.

“With the preparations the women’s will have ahead of the competition, I want to assure that they will not disappoint Nigerians a we aim at hosting to win.

“We however, seek the support of the National Sports Commission in any way they can so as to make the dream of winning the tournament a reality.

On our part, we will donate buses to Commission to be distributed for some of the Sports Federations to convey the national teams.

In his remarked, the Chairman NSC, Shehu Dikko while reacting appreciate the contribution of Nigeria Customs to sports development and also assuring them of government support.

“We will make sure that the Customs team get all the necessary supports from the government. It’s one of the agenda of President Tinubu led government to see Nigeria hosting as many competitions as possible. This will help in developing the athletes and in maintaining infrastructure.

The championship which begins from April 1st and ends 14th will be sponsored by the Nigerian Customs Service whose women’s volleyball team qualified having won the Nigeria Volleyball League in 2024.

The African Women’s Volleyball Championship is the official competition for senior women’s national volleyball teams of Africa, organized by the African Volleyball Confederation (CAVB). The tournament is currently held biannually. The current champion is Kenya, which won its tenth title at the 2023 tournament in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

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Sports

Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Crowned Champions at HFN North Central Division One Tourney

Published

11 hours ago

October 3, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The President of the Handball Federation of Nigeria (HFN), Jibril Seidu, has said the federation will continue to intensify its grassroots talent development drive through zonal competitions across the country.

Seidu stated this on Saturday in Abuja at the finals of the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship, where Plateau Vipers defeated Suleja Shooters 29-24 to emerge champions in the men’s category.

In the women’s final, Benue Queens of Makurdi defeated City Queens of Suleja to claim the title.

The eight-day tournament featured teams from across the North Central Zone, with Plateau Vipers of Jos, Confluence Stars of Lokoja, Unity Boys of Abuja, Suleja Shooters and Nasarawa Ambassadors of Lafia competing in the men’s category.

In the women’s category, Nuela Handball Academy of Ilorin, Inikpi Babes of Idah, Benue Queens of Makurdi and City Queens of Suleja competed for honours.

At the end of the competition, four teams — two male and two female — emerged as the North Central Zone’s representatives for the national Division One league.

According to Seidu, the tournament was organised as part of the federation’s deliberate strategy to take handball development back to the regions and discover talents that might otherwise remain unnoticed.

He said the HFN board, inaugurated on October 25, 2025, resolved that grassroots development was essential to creating a sustainable pipeline of players for national and international competitions.

“All the teams you have seen here are from the North Central Zone of the country, and every state is represented with an academy or state team,” he said.

Seidu explained that the new approach marked a departure from the previous system, where talent identification was largely centred on the federation’s major league competitions.

He said taking competitions to the regions would provide young players with greater opportunities to showcase their abilities while strengthening the foundation of handball across the country.

The HFN president also linked the grassroots initiative to Nigeria’s recent achievements in international handball, stressing the need to develop younger players who can eventually replace members of the current national teams.

He noted that Nigeria had qualified for the 2027 Men’s Junior Handball World Championship in North Macedonia, describing the achievement as evidence of the potential within the country’s handball system.

“How do we replace these players with upcoming players? This is the avenue for us to get players,” he said.

Seidu added that the federation was determined to make handball more visible and accessible, describing it as one of Nigeria’s major sporting disciplines with significant potential for growth.

The North Central tournament is part of a wider zonal programme designed to decentralise handball development across Nigeria.

According to the federation, similar competitions are being organised across other zones, including the South East, North East, North West and South South, with qualifiers from each zone expected to converge at a designated venue for the next stage of the competition.

The federation also appealed for greater support from sponsors, stakeholders and state associations to sustain its grassroots development programme.

It expressed appreciation to the participating states, academies, team sponsors and other stakeholders for their support and commitment to the growth of handball in Nigeria.

The federation said the initiative would provide a platform for discovering the next generation of Nigerian handball stars while expanding the sport’s reach beyond its traditional centres.
While Speaking the elated coach of Benue Queen Godwin Tondo has promised a stronger and more tactical performance after guiding the team to victory at the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship in Abuja.
He attributed the success to the team’s long-term youth development programme, noting that the squad was built through a deliberate process of identifying and nurturing young talents.
According to him, the programme began with the selection of 92 girls from secondary schools, who were subsequently trained and developed over a four-year period.

He said the team’s success was a product of sustained hard work and commitment despite the challenges encountered during preparations for the tournament.

“I feel very pleased being a champion today. The road to this stage was very, very hard, but I am very happy that we have got the result from all the toughness of the game,” he said.

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