ABUJA – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has accepted a significant overhaul of sports activities funding in Nigeria, directing the related federal ministries to make sure that from the 2026 fiscal yr, satisfactory sources for sporting infrastructure, packages, occasions, and worldwide competitions are absolutely offered within the nationwide price range and launched promptly.
The President made the announcement whereas highlighting Nigeria’s exceptional sports activities achievements in 2025, a yr that noticed the nation win a cumulative 373 medals throughout varied disciplines. From particular person athletics champions to the Tremendous Eagles’ bronze medal at AFCON 2025, in addition to profitable feminine soccer and basketball groups, Nigerian athletes “made the nation proud,” he mentioned.
“Sports activities is considered one of our strongest manufacturers as a nation. It unifies us, breaks all our fault traces, conjures up perception, and builds a way of neighborhood that cuts throughout age, language, ethnicity, faith, and social standing,” Tinubu added.
The President praised the Nationwide Sports activities Fee (NSC) below the management of Malam Shehu Dikko for driving reforms in keeping with his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, noting the progress regardless of funding and infrastructural challenges.
Nonetheless, Tinubu emphasised that sports activities improvement in Nigeria has lengthy suffered from bureaucratic delays, fragmented allocations, and insufficient infrastructure investments, which have hindered preparation and worldwide competitiveness. “That cycle undermined efficiency and positioned our athletes at an obstacle. This should change,” he mentioned.
To deal with these challenges, the President directed the Ministries of Finance, Finances and Financial Planning, and the Finances Workplace of the Federation to reset sports activities funding, streamline allocations at the moment dispersed throughout a number of authorities companies, and switch financial savings right into a unified framework below the NSC.
These measures are a part of the Renewed Hope Initiative for Nigeria’s Sports activities Economic system (RHINSE), geared toward utilizing sports activities as a driver for job creation, tourism, funding, and international affect. The initiative additionally emphasizes elite athlete improvement, grassroots participation, revitalized sports activities federations, and internet hosting main worldwide competitions domestically.
“Sports activities is our nationwide asset and should be administered, managed, and funded in alignment with its particular nature and calls for devoid of any bureaucratic bottlenecks,” President Tinubu mentioned. “The way forward for Nigerian sports activities can be deliberate, correctly funded, and aggressive. We are going to help our athletes early, put together them completely, and rejoice them proudly.”
The announcement has been broadly welcomed by sports activities stakeholders, who see the transfer as a long-overdue dedication to giving Nigerian athletes the soundness, sources, and infrastructure wanted to excel at residence and overseas.
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