Minister Wants Body To Recruit 2m Youths

The Nigeria
Academicals Sports Committee (NASCOM), has been urged to ensure that the task of recruiting two million additional children into sports was met by 2014.
The Minister of Sports, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, made the call at the presentation of NASCOM’s activities in the last one year under the “rhythm and play initiative’’, in Abuja on Monday,
According to the minister, there is need to have more children participating in sports to boost the country’s chances of having good representation at international sports events.
“In the last one year, we are delighted to see the progress NASCOM has made with the academicals sports and the new thinking you have brought into it.
“We are delighted to see the freshness of your ideas. However, I will want to see greater activities in the coming year.
“I will like us to move from planning to real action and also see more children in sports.
“I want to see you move more definitely towards realising the vision of getting two million additional children into sports under the rhythm and play initiative.
“I will like to see greater collaboration with the Department of Grassroots Sports in order to institutionalise the activities that NASCOM is undertaking’’, Abdullahi said.
Abdullahi, who is also the Chairman, National Sports Commission (NSC), said the ongoing school sports festival in Kwara witnessed unprecedented participation of school children because of NASCOM’s involvement in its organisation.
He assured NASCOM of NSC’s support in 2014, saying that the commission would want to see more children taking to sports.
The NASCOM Chairman, Mr Yemi Idowu, said academicals sports had been structured in a way that it would get more schools participate in sports.
This, he said, included the distribution of sports equipment to schools across the 36 states of the federation and the FCT.