The president of the Youth Sports Federation of Nigeria (YSFON), Dr Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, has called for more private-public support for grassroots sports bodies across the country.
Gawuna, who is also the Kano State deputy governor also commended the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare, for his commitment to making sports attractive to investors.
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Gawuna, therefore, applauded the minister for his pragmatic approach to properly reposition sports as a business in the country as well as giving priority to athletes’ welfare.
“The minister is doing well.
“He has reinvigorated the private-public partnership model in fast-tracking sports development.
“He is reaching out to retired athletes and created a Trust Fund to cater for the needs of the active ones.
“There have been talks about private sector involvement in sports development for decades but no Sports Minister has made concrete move towards actualising it in a practical manner the way the current minister has done.
“I think he is on a mission to reform sports and make it a business drive,” Gawuna said.
While enjoining stakeholders to rally round the Minister, Gawuna urged Dare to support grassroots organisations in the country.
Gawuna said investing in grassroots sports development is the only way to alleviate the suffering of Nigerian youths and reposition the country for utmost performance.
“The essence of creating a ‘Grassroots Sports Department’ in the Ministry is to work with grassroots organisations that are promoting sports at the grassroots.
“YSFON has over the years played a pivotal role in sports development at the grassroots.
“So, government needs to give support to YSFON and other sports bodies at the grassroots with some intervention and allocation to the organisations,” he said.
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