NBA Africa, Others Take Basketball Campaign To Schools

As part of activities marking the launch of the 2022 Power Forward basketball season, the National Basketball Association (NBA Africa), Exxon Mobil Foundation and Pan Africa on Wednesday, started touring schools in the Federal Capital territory.
The outing, which began at the Government Secondary School, Kubwa, brought together students, particularly those involved in basketball, from schools within FCT, including Government Day Secondary School, Dutse, Total Child Model School, Dutse, as well as students from the host school.
The elated students were taken through a life skills seminar handled by former NBA player, Olumide Oyedeji, after which they participated in a tree planting exercise.
The Power Forward line of activities, the organisers said, was aimed at building the capacity of the youth as part of their contributions towards sports development and a sustainable greener environment.
The Vice President, NBA Africa and Country Head, NBA Nigeria, Gbemisola Abudu, explained that the yearly programme, which is in its ninth series, is tailored to enhance the capacity of students in basketball technicalities and the curriculum for the junior NBA programme relevant for a successful career in the sport.
The programme is also aimed at ensuring that basketball is widely accepted by children in the FCT so that they can benefit from all the skills embedded in the game.
Aside from training and mentorship seminars, the students also participated in tree planting around the school environment.
The NBA boss added that the association is an environmentally conscious one that sees tree planting as very relevant to the overall development of humanity.
She said: “NBA, being part of tree planting, is because we know how important it is to sustain the environment. So, that is part of what we do. When you talk about Power Forward programme, it comprises health, environment, as well as capacity building in life skills.”
For the Country Director, PanAfricare Nigeria, Dr. Patrick Adah, the programme was part of the implementation of Power Forward projects, which, according to him, is targeted at using basketball as a platform to teach youths life skills and other related lessons.
“This is the season we celebrate World Environment Day. So, we engaged in a tree planting exercise. We all know the importance of trees to the environment and the earth.