By Andrew Abah, Abuja
The National Sports Commission (NSC) has officially inaugurated the board of the Nigeria Netball Federation (NNF) resulting in the sport getting its long overdue structural foundation and legitimacy in Nigeria.
Inaugurating the board on Tuesday in Abuja, the NSC Chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, said that Netball has the potential of giving Nigerian kids the pathway to live their dream and win medals for Nigeria at the global stage.
The chairman who described the Netball board as the most corporately aligned sport federation in Nigeria, urged the new board to grow the sport from bottom to the top.
“The potential of this sport is huge and I have no doubt that with the calibre of personalities I am seeing on this board, Nigeria has what it takes to be very competitive at the global stage in no distant time.
“I am even happier to see that this board has set a new benchmark in terms of governance structure, coming up with a clear constitution and a five-year strategic plan, and it is highly commendable”.
The Director General of the NSC, Hon. Bukola Olopade who described the inauguration of the NNF board as historic, echoed how Netball has the potential to be one of Nigeria’s
guaranteed podium-finish sports.
“These are exciting times for Nigerian sports and all of these are made possible because of the backing Mr. President is giving to the sports sector, which is why today Netball is finally a Federation in Nigeria.
“We have a large chunk of quality Netball players abroad who have shown keen interest to represent the country and today, we are on the right path by establishing a Federation that can compete strongly with any other Federation in the country.
“I must also emphasize that aside from the top quality of people on the board, my biggest excitement is the level of inclusivity that we are seeing on the board. A large number of those on the board are women and it is very gratifying to see”.
President of the newly inaugurated Nigeria Netball Federation (NNF) Dr. Esther Oluwatoyin Aluko expressed gratitude to the leadership of the NSC for restoring the hopes of the sport which has long been lost for decades.
She revealed that the board has strategically put machinery in place to ensure Nigeria builds a strong domestic Netball framework that will get Nigeria to the 2030 Commonwealth Games.
“The NNF’s governing structure is built around 14 specialized commissions with every commission assigned with a specific pillar of plan named quarterly KPI obligations and direct accountability to the board.
“With this by 2029, we would have delivered a fully commissioned National Netball Complex and four internationally compliant courts capable of hosting world and continental competitions on Nigerian soil,” she noted.
