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Sports Minister Inaugurate Board Of Sports Federation Presidents
…Says Boards, Business and Technical Workshop Session Underway
Joel Ajayi
Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare Friday inaugurated the Presidents and boards of Sports Federations charging them to roll up their sleeves for the task of deepening development of Sports in Nigeria.
The Minister while congratulating the new board executives emphasized the need for them to work as a team while restating the need to be guided by established processes, procedures and Code of Governance of National Sports Federations in the discharge of their responsibilities. “As you are aware, the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development’s core responsibilities are focused at facilitating youth and sport development through the establishment of a conducive policy environment that provides strategic support systems and sport policy implementation, amongst other functions. The Ministry coordinates the formulation and review of policies and legislation in order to provide a framework for effective implementation of youth and sports programs”, Dare reaffirmed.
“Let me also stress that the future of the various sports is now in your hands, the career of our young athletes under your Federations is now in your hands and history will judge you how you have positively or otherwise impacted Sports in your respective governing bodies”, the Minister added.
In line with the reclassification of sports from recreation to business as approved by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Minister revealed that a new business orientation will be pursued, tasking the board of each Federation to adopt and bring about a business approach to its operations. Dare further gave a marching order to the newly inaugurated 28 Sports Federations to within six months begin the process of formulating the Federations’ constitution in line with the dictates of various international Federations with the inputs and guidance of the Ministry to ensure domestication and operation in tandem with Nigerian laws and Sports Industry policy.
The Minister charged the board of Federations to settle down to business and avoid the acrimonious relationships that beset some associations in the past. He intimated the new Executives that a 2-day technical and business workshop for capacity building will be organized in collaboration with the Edo State Government, and held in Edo State in the coming weeks.
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Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold
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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