Sports

FG to Diversify Sports For More Youth Empowerment

Published

4 years ago

September 23, 2022

The Federal Government has assured that it will explore all possible avenues for more youth participation in sports with a view to empowering them to become self employed and self reliant so as to contribute to the socio-economic development of the country.

The Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare gave the assurance on Friday in his Office in Abuja when he received the Executive Director of Hand – To – Hand Sports Federation of Moscow.

Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Ismaila Abubakar, the Minister stated that “this was in line with the present Administration’s policy thrust which is geared towards making the teeming Nigerian youth entrepreneurial, self-reliant and employable”.

According to him, “the Ministry will put up workable modalities that will make Nigeria not to only key into the Hand – To – Hand Mashal Sports but to also open up more doors for our youth involvement in the various fields of sports world wide”.

He therefore urged the youth in the country to keep themselves abreast with the various policies, programmes and initiatives of the present administration so as to take advantage of every available opportunity to better their lives.

Earlier, the Chief Executive Administrator, Hand – To – Hand Sports, Moscow, Mr. Sorgai Poroshin stated that he was in the Ministry to introduce the game to the country.

According to him, the Sports which had been in existence for the past sixteen years has a thirty- eight-country membership, including Ghana, hence the need for Nigeria to see the possibility of keying into it especially as it is the giant of Africa.

He noted that Nigeria’s acceptance of the game will further open a new horizon for the country’s youth to make their mark in the Committee of Sporting World.

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Sports

Tinubu, Fashola, Governors, UNESCO, Sports Leaders to Headline National Grassroots Sports Summit

Published

13 mins ago

October 29, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The stage is being set for a landmark gathering at the Presidential Villa as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Lagos State Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, and leading figures from government, sports administration and international development feature in the proposed opening-day programme of the National Grassroots Sports Development Summit 2026.

In a statement signed by Thursday by the Chairperson Media Sub-com National Grassroot Sports Summit Dr. (Mrs.) Kehinde Ajayi stated that, the two-day Summit, scheduled for November 18–19, 2026, at the Banquet Hall, State House, Presidential Villa, Abuja, is being organized by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Grassroots Sports Development, Hon. Adeyinka Anthony Adeboye.

With the theme “Creating a New Pathway for Sustainable Grassroots Sports Development,” the gathering seeks to produce practical solutions to Nigeria’s longstanding challenges in talent discovery, infrastructure, funding, coaching and athlete development.

The opening day, Wednesday, November 18, promises high-level engagement, with President Tinubu listed as Special Guest of Honour, while Fashola is scheduled to deliver a keynote address.

Also featuring in the Day One programme is Dr. Tayo Aduloju, Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), whose organization has been engaged as technical partner to help translate discussions into a workable development roadmap.

Other personalities and institutions on the opening-day lineup include the Chairman and Director-General of the National Sports Commission, Mallam Shehu Dikko and Hon. Bukola Olopade; the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum; the President of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON); and the Head of Office and UNESCO Representative to Nigeria.

Also listed are Barrister Enitan Oshodi, President of the African Table Tennis Federation; the President of the Nigeria Olympic Committee; and Dr. Musa Nakorji of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Research Department.

The involvement of these personalities reflects the Summit’s emphasis on connecting sports development with economic planning, education, grassroots governance, international cooperation and private-sector investment.

Adeboye described the gathering as an opportunity to move Nigerian sports beyond isolated achievements towards a coordinated national development system.

“The real question is not whether Nigeria has sporting talent.
We know we have talent in abundance. The question is how we build a system that discovers, nurtures and supports that talent consistently, from our communities and schools to the international stage,” he said.

He stressed that the participation of state governments, local councils, development institutions and sports administrators would be critical to producing lasting outcomes.

The Summit will continue on Thursday, November 19, with further stakeholder engagements aimed at developing actionable recommendations for sustainable grassroots sports development with preparations intensifying, organizers are confident that the gathering will provide a defining platform for strengthening the foundation of Nigerian sports and expanding opportunities for young people nationwide.

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