CROSS RIVER, CALABAR – The Director General of the National Sports Commission, Hon. Adebukola Olopade, said the Federal Government has implemented “significant policy changes and radical decisions’’ to strengthen sports development nationwide.
He spoke during the second National Council on Sports meeting in Calabar, hosted by Cross River State Governor Sen. Bassey Edet Otu, and held at Kashim Shettima Hall, State Library Complex, from 25th–29th November 2025.
The conference, themed “The Business of Sports: Creating Jobs, Wealth and Utility Under the Renewed Hope Agenda,” brought together commissioners and directors of sports from across the federation to evaluate Nigeria’s sports performance and policy direction.
Olopade said the reforms target grassroots programmes, podium performance pathways, funding strategies and athlete welfare to improve competitiveness, adding that athlete insurance is being reframed to guarantee safety, health coverage and property protection nationwide.
He explained that the policies “aim to make hosting national sports festivals and games more accessible, even for less affluent states,” while repositioning sports as an economic driver capable of generating long-term community benefits.
The DG highlighted the economic impact of sports events, noting over 300 small businesses benefited during the Abeokuta National Sports Festival and thousands more at the African Athletics Meet and Youth Games this year.
He added that more than 5,000 small-scale businesses have already gained from federal sports initiatives, describing the growth as “verifiable evidence that sports can drive sustainable livelihoods when deliberately structured.”
The National President of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Isaiah Benjamin, told journalists the meeting focuses on treating sports as serious business and strengthening administrative structures across sporting federations.
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Benjamin said a communique will capture decisions on performance development, institutional weaknesses and administrative reforms, stressing that Nigeria must urgently address systemic lapses dragging competitive results across major sports.
He described Nigeria’s recent football performance, particularly failure to qualify for the last two U17 World Cups, as unbefitting for a country with Nigeria’s population, talent pool and international football history.
Benjamin linked the decline to poor preparation, inconsistent technical leadership and “four to five coaching changes during qualifiers,” insisting that strong developmental systems must replace ad-hoc decision-making.
He said SWAN will soon release “a strong statement” on the state of Nigerian football, highlighting urgent challenges and recommending solutions that stakeholders must adopt to stabilise performance.
Event displays at the venue featured images of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, National Sports Commission Chairman Shehu Dikko, and host Governor Bassey Otu, underscoring federal and state endorsement of the national sports reform agenda.