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Its Time to Move Sports in Africa to Next Level

Published

5 years ago

September 29, 2021

As Dare Celebrates ANOCA at 2021 40

The Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare on Wednesday officially declared open events to mark the 40th Anniversary of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) Executive Board at the ANOCA headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria.

The Minister who is playing host to Youth and Sports Ministers from Algeria, Ghana and Egypt acknowledged the presence of his counterparts and said it’s time to take African sports development to the next level.

Dare said, “This celebration gladdens my heart, as I see a true reflection of generosity, understanding, international cooperation, sports and cultural exchange amongst 54 countries with a unified vision.

“The presence of the Ministers of Youth and Sports of four African countries – Algeria, Egypt, Ghana and indeed Nigeria is unprecedented and signals a new horizon for greater cooperation and coordination of sports development in Africa.”

The Minister would also commend his colleagues for being change agents and for their commitment to work together to improve the fundamentals of sports growth and development in Africa.

According to him, “Nigeria shares this vision with ANOCA and all those who are present here today. The promotion of a society concerned with humanity, dignity and peace are tenets we subscribe to even as reflected in the key cardinals of Olympic solidarity in Africa.

“Since the year 2019 when the headquarters of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) was moved from Cameroon to Nigeria, the government of Nigeria has intensified efforts in supporting the operational strategies of the Association, towards promoting the fundamental principles and values of Olympism across the African continent.

“As the Olympic headquarters of Africa, Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development has ensured consistent funding of programmes and activities organized by ANOCA to assist in actualizing the aims and objectives of the organization.

Dare also expressed optimism in the future of African sports and challenged members of the executive board of ANOCA to be deliberate with the efforts at sports development in Africa.

“The future of African sports is bright and certain but only if we intensify our efforts in the direction of infrastructural development, athlete’s welfare and grassroots sports development. These are issues to which the ANOCA President Mustapha Berraf has committed himself.

“On our part as Ministers of Youth And Sports, we will marshal the political will necessary, chart a course of initiatives and sports policy development that can deliver a brighter future for sports development.” Dare concluded.

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Featured

Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold

Published

4 days ago

October 28, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, on Tuesday inaugurated the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector in Abuja, dismissing reports that Nigeria sold $700 billion worth of solid minerals to the US.

The inauguration followed the strategic cooperation framework established between Nigeria and the United States during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head PRESS and Public Relations Department Mrs. Kania Maliki Andeyaba stated that, Alake in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed with the US is a government-to-government platform to facilitate business-to-business engagements between American investors and Nigerian local operators, not a sale of assets.

Harping on the importance of the solid minerals sector to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda, he noted that the administration was committed to reducing dependence on a mono-product economy through the sustainable development of Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.

According to him, the Nigeria–US partnership as a strategic initiative to attract investment, promote technology transfer, strengthen local mineral processing and create employment opportunities.

“There is no sale of any Nigerian asset. There’s nothing exchanging hands,” Alake declared.

“We created a platform to facilitate mingling of US investment ventures with Nigeria’s local operators. It is in the public domain. We signed it in public and published it in four or five national newspapers.”

The Minister said reports claiming the US was coming to take over Nigeria’s minerals and security architecture were untrue at best and products of riotous imagination at worst.

Explaining the policy thrust, Alake said Africa has historically held the short end of the stick in global economic transactions, and Nigeria is determined to change that model.

“We have the resources, the critical elements the world needs to transit to clean energy. So we are creating a new paradigm — you bring your capital, expertise and technology, to match with our natural resources and create a win-win situation . The investor gains, Nigeria gains.’’he said.

Nigeria, he stressed, had operated a mono-cultural economy dependent on oil, while solid minerals were exploited informally — with ores taken “from pit to port” without value addition.

Alake said government has now made local processing mandatory, refusing to grant mineral titles to investors without a clear pathway to processing in Nigeria.

He said the policy led to the springing up of processing factories, including the largest lithium processing plant in West Africa commissioned recently in Nasarawa by the Vice President, and informed the formation of the African Minerals Strategy Group.

Alake noted that investor confidence has returned due to macro-economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu that guarantee security of tenure and repatriation of profits.

He charged the committee to discharge its assignment responsibly, saying its work is strategic to achieving the President’s $1 trillion economy target.

To this end, he told the Committee to ensure effective coordination, identify investment opportunities and translate the framework into measurable outcomes capable of positioning Nigeria as a competitive player in the global solid minerals industry.

In his welcome address, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the inauguration translates growing bilateral engagements into a structured framework for practical cooperation and investment mobilization

Economic Officer at the US Embassy, Jonathan Baas, said President Donald Trump has prioritized three areas for US embassies — energy, artificial intelligence/super intelligence, and critical minerals.

Baas said Washington’s direction is to work with partners to secure critical supply chains while ensuring partners capture value.

“We just signed a contract today on looking into building AI data centres in Nigeria at the Nigerian Economic Summit. That’s the direction Washington wants us to go,” he said.

In his vote of thanks, CEO/Managing Director of Nigeria Solid Minerals Company, NSMC said that the committee

is expected to coordinate implementation, facilitate investment and monitor progress towards achieving the objectives of the Nigeria–US cooperation framework.

The inauguration reinforces the Federal Government’s commitment to repositioning the solid minerals sector as a key driver of economic diversification, industrial development and national prosperity under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

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