Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare has inaugurated a Steering Committee of the Sports Industry Working Group (SIWG) to attract investors and transform the sports Industry.
The minister while inaugurating the committee on Thursday in Abuja stressed the need for sports to be seen as big business and not just for leisure.
The Committee, which is a Public-Private Dialogue (PPD) platform, is charged with the mandate to create effective synergy between the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development and the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG).
Also, LASG assures the business community of security, investment-friendly policies.
Dare said the Committee, which is made up of a 14-member committee of equal number representative from the public and private sectors will synergise to create the right environment and formulate policies to drive sports investment and development.
‘’For us as a country, the greatest challenge we have faced is that sports are not taken as a business,
“And because the sport is not business that is why a country like Nigeria has to start ‘Adopt an Athlete’s Fund’ to raise funds for the athletes because government fund is totally insufficient,” Dare said.
He expressed optimism that the measure will lay the foundation to fast track sports development in the country.
Earlier, the Co-chairman (Private Sector) of the SIWG, Mr Ufot Udeme said the public-private partnership will turn the sports sector into a catalyst for economic and national development.
He pledged the commitment of the private sector to Nigeria’s sports industrialisation in line with international best practice.
