Sports

IWMI Launches Stakeholders Dialogue Platform To Shape Nigeria’s FLID Agenda

Published

1 month ago

September 22, 2025

Mariam Sanni

The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) has launched a Multi-stakeholder Platform on Farmer-led Irrigation (MSD-FLID) to foster cross
sectoral engagement, collaborative priority setting, demand articulation, and investment to shape the country’s FLID agenda.

The platform is aimed towards bringing together a diverse range of stakeholders across Nigeria’s irrigation and agricultural sectors.

IWMI officially launched the platform on September 10th with the first in a series of multi-stakeholder dialogues – a crucial component of the platform, in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources & Sanitation (FMWR&S), Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMA&FS), Bank of Agriculture (BOA), and the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) Project.

As Africa grapples with the increased frequency and intensity of climate impacts, irrigation becomes a critical adaptation and resilience building strategy. There is significant potential for small-scale farmer-led irrigation development (FLID) in Nigeria.

As a farmer-driven approach, FLID offers opportunities to explore solar-powered solutions and public-private partnerships that promote scalable irrigation innovations, helping to bring these technologies and solutions to a wider group of smallholders. FLID’s full potential, however, remains underutilized.

Despite the availability of numerous irrigation innovations, adoption is constrained by weak cross-sectoral coordination, policy incoherence, lack of flexible financing, and misalignment of national needs and priorities with development interventions.

Supporting farmer-led irrigation development to drive Nigeria’s food security needs urgent action. Boosting productivity, food security, and improving livelihoods through irrigation development requires an enabling environment for effective coordination and enhanced harmonization of programs to accelerate irrigation innovation uptake.

The dialogue highlighted the critical importance of improved coordination to expand FLID in Nigeria.

Speaking at the launch, Dr. Olufunke Cofie, IWMI’s Africa Director for Research Impact, emphasized IWMI’s long-standing commitment to supporting food system transformation in Africa and in Nigeria particularly:

“The potential for farmer-led irrigation in Nigeria and across sub-Saharan Africa is significant. Stakeholders must collaborate to realize this potential. FLID is central to African agrifood systems transformation and crucial for resilience building.”

Engr. Esther Oluniyi, the Director of Irrigation and Drainage, FMWR&S, and Mr. Ayo Sotinrin, the Managing, Bank of Agriculture (BOA), Nigeria, both emphasized the essential need for a multi-stakeholder platform to address the challenges of scaling up FLID.

“Strong partnerships are key to the transformation of Nigeria’s irrigation sector. We are ready to collaborate with all stakeholders,” Engr Esther Oluniyi, Director Irrigation and Drainage, FMWR&S, Nigeria.

Mr. Sotinrin also reaffirmed BOA’s commitment to supporting FLID through innovative financing products, strategic partnerships, and schemes for solar irrigation.

“BOA will continue to work with IWMI to co-design tailored financial products for FLID, develop financing models for solar irrigation, and leverage its network for FLID advancement,” Sotinrin stated.

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Sports

PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon Earns World Athletics Label

Published

2 days ago

October 29, 2025

The Gleamer

Nigeria’s foremost Sports Company, Nilayo Sports Management Limited (NSML) has announced the second edition of the PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon, set to light up Nigeria’s capital city on Saturday, December 6, 2025.

With the theme “Steady Strides,” this year’s race captures the measured rhythm and determined pace that define world-class long-distance running, a reflection of the steady progress and ambitious vision shaping the marathon’s evolution into a global platinum-labelled event.

In a historic milestone for Nigerian sports, the PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon has been officially awarded the prestigious World Athletics Label for its second edition, a distinction achieved in record time. This remarkable feat makes it the first marathon globally to earn the label so swiftly, underscoring both the organizational excellence of NSML and the dynamic rise of PremiumTrust Bank, currently celebrated as Nigeria’s fastest-growing commercial bank.

The 2025 edition is expected to attract elite international athletes, top local runners, and marathon enthusiasts from around the world, alongside officials from World Athletics who will oversee the competition.

Speaking on the announcement, Managing Director of Nilayo Sports Management Limited, Yetunde Olopade, expressed excitement about the unique partnership with PremiumTrust Bank.

“This second edition is fundamentally unique because it represents the first-ever true super-partnership on such a dynamic sports property in our nation and arguably, globally. PremiumTrust Bank is not just a sponsor but the sole partner anchoring the establishment, organization, and consolidation of a global marathon in Nigeria’s capital city.

” We are proud and grateful for the bank’s visionary leadership, which not only recognized the immense potential of the first edition but is now single-handedly driving the race toward international acclaim.”

Managing Director of PremiumTrust Bank, Dr. Emmanuel Efe Emefienim (CON) emphasized the shared values underpinning the partnership.

“PremiumTrust Bank is built on the philosophy of rapid, impactful, and sustainable growth, and the theme of this year’s marathon perfectly reflects our operational ethos.”

“Attaining World Athletics Label status in just the second year validates that our investment is yielding world-class outcomes. We are deeply proud to be the sole partner building this monumental legacy, reinforcing our commitment to sports development, community wellbeing, excellence, and platforms where champions are made.”

The PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon 2025 promises to be a spectacular celebration of endurance, athleticism, and community spirit, further strengthening Abuja’s status on the global racing calendar.

Registration for participants is currently open as it promises to be another marathon spectacle on the 6th of December 2025.

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