Basketball

Funds threaten D’Tigers World Cup campaign

Published

6 years ago

August 17, 2019

D’Tigers’ earlier scheduled trip to China in continuation of their preparation for the FIBA World Cup may have suffered a setback over paucity of funds as the Nigeria Basketball Federation continues struggling to make funds available.

This much was made known to journalists at the weekend by the General Manager of the team, Musa Adamu when asked about the team’s plan for the FIBA 2019 World Cup in China.

According to him, I cannot tell you exactly when the team is leaving for China, the basketball federation has been doing a lot for this team. We started this elimination over a year ago and now going to two years and the federation has been funding the trips for each window.

“Each window, we had to bring players, fly them down, accommodate them and also pay insurance and all these things have been done singlehandedly by the federation with a promise from the ministry to support us, but we are still expecting and hoping that they will do so before we leave for China,” Adamu continued.

The former Nigerian international revealed that despite plans to adequately prepare the team for the apex global sports fiesta, the unavailability of funds might just be the clog in the wheel of the team’s preparation.

“The team is here in Nigeria, so we hope that they will act because we don’t know when we will leave. There are no funds available for now. The federation is looking up to the Ministry with the hope that the funds will be released for us to leave”

He took time out to appreciate the Engr. Musa Kida led NBBF board for their selfless sacrifice throughout the qualifiers as he appealed to the President, His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari to intervene and save the country from global embarrassment.

“I wish to appreciate the federation, the President, Engr Musa Kida and the board. They have been doing so much for this team and basketball and I think it’s time for government to step in and assist us.”

Adamu revealed that the current players in camp are talented, motivated and ready to represent Nigeria well, but funding has been a major issue.

“I will like to use the forum to call on the President, His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari to turn his eyes a little bit to the D’Tigers because they are also a national team. We are expecting support from him to release funds for our team to be able to participate in this World Cup.”

Adamu regrettably admitted that the team which became the first country in the world to qualify may end up not participating at the World Cup starting on the 29th of August if funds are not released on time by the Federal Government through the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

“We have come a long way. We have a very good, ambitious and motivated team. We really hope that the President will try to help his children, his people and his own team to be able to participate in this World Cup through the sports ministry obviously”.

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Basketball

Senate Set to Endorse 30% Value Addition Requirement for Raw Materials

Published

3 weeks ago

May 20, 2025

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Nigerian Senate has assured Nigerians and Africans that the 30% raw materials bill would be passed this week and transmitted to the House of Representatives for concurrence.
Senate President, Sen. Godswill Akpabio gave the assurance on Tuesday at the opening ceremony of the inaugural Africa Raw Materials Summit 2025, held on Tuesday in Abuja, with the theme, “Shaping the Future of Africa’s Resource Landscape.”

Speaking through the Chairman, Senate Committee on Science and Technology, Sen. Aminu Abbas, Akpabio said, “I can assure you that the 30% value addition bill before the Senate will be passed this week and transmitted to the House Representatives for concurrence.”

Earlier in his speech, he said, “In the Nigerian Senate, we have resolved to be proactive in addressing this structural imbalance. It is in this spirit that I reaffirm our full legislative backing for the 30% Minimum Value-Addition Bill, currently under consideration. This groundbreaking bill mandates that no raw material of Nigerian origin shall be exported without undergoing a minimum of 30% local value addition—whether through processing, refining, packaging, or industrial transformation.

“This legislation is not intended to stifle trade; rather, it is designed to ignite domestic enterprise, create jobs, attract capital, and build resilient value chains that benefit our people.”

“We must reject the historic pattern in which Africa merely supplies inputs while others reap the benefits of innovation, branding, and global market control.” he added.

“It is my hope that this model will be replicated across African nations, with regional centres of excellence established to share data, technologies, and best practices in raw material development.”

He used the opportunity to call on African countries to replicate the legislation in their countries to boost their economies.

“Permit me, therefore, to echo the call for the adoption of an Abuja Declaration on Raw Materials and Industrial Transformation in Africa. Let this declaration not merely reside in summit communiqués but become a living charter—a reference for executive action, legislative alignment, and investment mobilisation.

“Let it guide our representations at the African Union, the G20, and global trade forums where Africa’s voice must no longer be that of a supplier, but that of a producer,” he said.

The Minister of Science Innovation and Technology, Chief Geoffrey Innaji, speaking through the Minister of Transport, said “We are deploying digital tools, traceability infrastructure, and research-to-industry pathways to strengthen intra-African trade under AfCFTA. This is how Africa moves from extraction to transformation—from potential to prosperity.

“Let this summit send a clear message: Africa will no longer export its future in raw form. Our minerals will power industries, our crops will feed global markets, and our youth will drive innovation,” he said.

On his part, the Minister of State for Industry, John Owen, in his speech noted that, “with African continental free trade area, I believe that a lot of opportunities are already being opened to see how we can do much more than we are currently doing, and the statistics in terms of export trade should be less in terms of exporting raw materials and more in terms of exporting finished goods.”

Commenting on the Summit, the Director General Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Mounso, in his speech said, “Today, in the heart of Africa, we gather not merely for a summit, but for a solemn declaration: Africa shall no longer be the warehouse of raw potential, but the workshop of refined prosperity.”

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