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Dare’s Daring 6 Months Exploits in Youth and Sports Development

Published

4 years ago

April 12, 2020

When President Muhammadu Buhari named Sunday Dare as Youths and Sports Minister six months ago, he was applauded for making the right choice.
The excitement generated by Dare’s appointment was hinged on his pedigree as an accomplished international journalist, administrative exposure and experience in public service.

Prior to Dare’s appointment, the belief was that sports was usually the last in the pecking order of merit.
Some ex-ministers had laid credence to this with seemingly poor performances and lack of vision that has kept Nigerian sports in the archives of past glory and youth development at a crossroads. Six months down the line, Dare is reinventing the wheels.

The long years of systemic destruction, failed dreams, poor planning, disillusionment and frustrations have left the terrain comatose and at a crossroads. Decaying infrastructure, poorly motivated athletes, disgruntled work force, poorly trained coaches, archaic policy and angrily resentful public make the assignment not only herculean, but one that needs ruffling of feathers.

Dare began his assignment by seeking to change the mindset of the workers and the wrong perception of the public that nothing can work in the sector. For someone from a technologically driven background, Dare had to change the mindset of the Ministry’s staff. Gradually, in the last six months, the work ethic has changed.

With a Permanent Secretary in Gabriel Aduda who is desirous of breaking away from old tradition, Dare has moved in leaps and bounds. He has restored confidence in the ministry as evidenced in the partnership with the private sector, agencies and international bodies. His first breakthrough was moving away from the narrow scope of being called ‘Football Minister’.

Under Dare, Youth and Sports Development have been given a new vista. He hit the ground running with his Adopt initiative which has seen corporate organisations, governors and individuals adopting athletes, signing MoUs and paying money directly into their accounts to prepare for the now postponed Tokyo Olympics. This is against the convention where Olympics-bound athletes never had funds to prepare.
The ripple effect is that it takes away the burden off the athletes, administrators and the coaches. This ensures transparency and accountability of funds. The Adopt initiative has also led to infrastructural developments with the rehabilitation of stadiums in Abuja, Kaduna Ibadan through partnerships.
This has restored faith in the sports scene. Sponsors, Individuals and others now feel comfortable investing in Sports with the belief that there is proper accountability and due process.

The Adopt A stadium initiative is also paying off with the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja to be renovated by Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Daura Township Stadium, Katsina by Chief Kensington Adebutu, Ahmadu Bello Stadium by Kaduna State Governor Malam Nasir El Rufai. The entire sports spectrum is being revived despite the paucity of funds.

Dare’s master plan is moving sports away from mere recreation to real business anchored on 4 triggers; infrastructure as catalyst for development, investment, incentives and policy. The inauguration of the steering committee of Sports Industry Group led by eminent personalities is an indication of a new dawn, hope and renewal in the sports sector by the organised private sector.

Unlike past Ministers who became pigeonholed as football Ministers, Dare is re-inventing the wheel by paying attention to other sports and youth development. This has seen him navigate round the country in search of talents, revival of the state Sports Festival, launching of a Youth policy document, Digital training and creation of employment opportunities.

His interventions are already yielding results with the discovery of the young swimmer nicknamed the Fish, the young girl boxing sensation Shekina, the tennis sisters Oiza and Nene Yakubu. No wonder he has earned himself the sobriquet “Talent Hunter, Reformist Minister among others.

The revival of the National Sports Festival, Youth Games, NUGA, back to school, Principal Cup, Headmaster Cup among others are geared towards enduring sports development. Welfare of athletes occupies a front burner in the Minister’s agenda with athletes getting their entitlements promptly.

Dare insists that without sports men, sports will be meaningless as they are the core of winning glory for our country. Hence, while active athletes are getting remunerated, forgotten heroes are also getting due recognition. Dare is working with top athletes like Mary Onyali, Daniel Igali, Daniel Amokachi, Joseph Yobo among others in rallying their colleagues to actualize his new vision.

Youths now enjoy a new deal under the DEEL PROGRAMME, an acronym for Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Engagement. Through this, youths are being trained to acquire Digital skills and become self-employed.

The Minister has gone into strategic partnership with at least 20 agencies to implement this action plan. More than 500,000 Youths are expected to benefit from the DY.NG (Digital Youth Nigeria initiative. Likewise, The Nigeria Youth Online, NOYA programme is expected to train youngsters in Digital skills, trading and internship. This would be done through the Youth Development centres across Nigeria. An agreement with the AFDB has been signed to actualize this mandate.
Other Development partners include Centre Bank, Bank of Industries, Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Nigeria Content Development Monitoring Board, Dangote Industries, Premier Lotto, 21st Century and partnership with over 50 Corporate Organizations on WEP initiative. Since the Ministry is limited by funds, Dare is thinking outside the box by partnering with the private sector, wealthy individuals, State Governments, Agencies and International organizations to actualize what he calls a huge, unfunded mandate.

Six months in the saddle, Dare appears to be on the right track of rewriting Nigerian Youth and Sports Development history.

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RMRDC: Making Giant Strides Under Prof. Nnanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso

Published

14 hours ago

September 19, 2024

The Gleamer

By Joel Ajayi

As we embark on a journey, we always pray for an able, experienced, and courageous driver, pilot, or sailor depending on the means of transportation.

This is because the captain will have enough experience and boldness to navigate out of turbulence and to bring all the passengers and crew to the intended destination.

Interestingly, these fine qualities of ability, experience, boldness, and many more, abound in the man, Prof. Nnanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso, who we all are pleased was appointed the Raw Materials Research and Development Council, RMRDC, the Director General/CEO by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu a few months ago. This is because he has brought his knowledge, ability, experience, and doggedness to bear in carrying out his assignment in charge of the Council.

The RMRDC, operating under the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science, and Technology, is pivotal in driving Nigeria’s industrial growth by optimizing local raw materials exploitation, development, and utilization. RMRDC, ab initio, was conceived as a child of necessity when Nigeria was reeling from the throes of global recession and plummeting crude oil prices.

Without an iota of doubt, today, the council is experiencing a transformation with massive innovation in raw material exploitation, development, and utilization, supporting business and industrial growth, and contributing to Nigeria’s economic prosperity.

Speaking during a press briefing on Tuesday, in Abuja to commemorate his 100 days in office, he said the council is laying a solid foundation through numerous innovations that will further enhance growth in the country.

According to him, “In the past 100 days, my strategic pursuits have been to lay solid foundations for enduring success in these goals.

“Upon assuming this position, I set five crucial deliverables which include, refocusing the Council as a premier research institution; Strengthening the Council’s productivity and operational efficiency; and Significantly improving the staff welfare to be the best in the class of similar organizations.

“Others include, Boosting the Council’s visibility and instituting remarkable culture change that encourages ownership and productivity as well as Strengthening and deepening the Council’s place in the international arena.”While speaking on his Achievements so far, the DG revealed further: “My first task, therefore, was to implement a strategic goal-setting for the Council’s staff to define and set out clear objectives and targets to be achieved by the Council within a specified period towards refocusing on this historical mandate. We unleashed five significant initiatives in that regard.

“The nationwide raw material data collection exercise that focused on technical and investment information to drive our mission forward.

“The restructuring and renaming of the former Technology Innovation Complex (TIC), at the Obasanjo Space Center at Airport Road, Abuja, to a Research and Demonstration Plants Complex (RDPC). This complex will be Africa’s first center of excellence in raw material research, featuring state-of-the-art laboratories, technology development workshops, and proof of concept demonstrations.

“We have reactivated the Council’s Journal and repositioned it internationally. The repositioned Journal of Raw Material Research (JORMAR) will host RMRDC’s researchers’ publications, which are crucial in promoting awareness, facilitating knowledge sharing, and informing stakeholders about the opportunities and challenges in Nigeria’s raw materials sector. “The collaboration with universities and academies will strengthen our capacity for conducting market-guided research, ensuring sustained workforce training while deepening our orientation in science.

“The council has reformulated a new template for all our research proposals to ensure and sustain a clear departure from the old culture of blue-sky and deliberately endless research.”Speaking further, Prof Nwanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso stated that Staff welfare remains a top priority as an issue of unpaid salaries is settled as well as set up a comprehensive welfare program. “Similarly, we established the RMRDC Training School to sustainably build our staff and stakeholders’ capacity to further the staff welfare improvement goal.

“We are committed to openness, inclusiveness, and performance management and have initiated steps to continuously improve staff ownership, orchestrate transformative culture change, boost our corporate visibility, and enhance.

“To further strengthen our visibility and communication strategies, we are upgrading our media infrastructure, which includes the launch of the RMRDC online media platform, The RMRDC TV Online.

“Additionally, we are working hard to effectively enhance the intellectual property and patent portfolio of RMRDC from its current 40 to approximately 200 new patents within the next 24 months. This proactive approach secures valuable IP assets and positions the Council as a leader in innovation within the raw materials sector, contributing to Nigeria’s overall economic growth.“As well as launching an e-registration and certification portal to enhance transparency in the raw materials sector,” DG revealed.

He however reaffirmed his commitment to reshape the future of research, technology, and innovation, driving Nigeria towards an industrially vibrant and technologically resilient economy.

“As I mark 100 days in office, I boldly say that the Council is on the verge of rewriting its history.

“I believe that in no distant future, RMRDC will play a leading role in enhancing raw materials’ development to boost raw materials’ industrial trial processing and attain sustainable industrial growth in Nigeria.

The DG, however, applauded the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji, for his unwavering support and mentorship, saying the Minister’s leadership has been instrumental in the progress made so far.

In his opening remarks, the Directorate of Corporate Affairs, Mr Chucks Ngaha commended the hard-working DG who has weathered the storm further to put the Council on the ladder of more prosperity.

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