The chairman of Nigeria’s National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Shehu Dikko has called on royal fathers across the country to promote events and activities of traditional sports in their various communities nationwide, Sports247 reports.
Dikko made the call while revealing that the NSC has outlined an annual budget to boost activities and participation in traditional sports, which he said is part of the Commission’s commitment to development, promotion and internationalisation of ancestral disciplines.
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The NSC’s boss added during his visit to the Abula venue at Package B of Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja that a dedicated budget line has been created for traditional sports for the first time in history, with a view towards taking it beyond festivals and local participation alone.
While affirming that events in the sector will be developed into internationally recognised standards, Dikko also urged the Traditional Sports Federation of Nigeria (TSFN) to take its competitions to all parts of the country, especially as an investment interest for dambe has come from Saudi Arabia.
He further declared that events in abula, dambe, kokuwa, langa and ayo should be promoted nationwide, because they are all part of Nigeria’s ancestral sporting heritage, which deserve sustained investment to give them wider participation and international exposure.
Dikko disclosed at length: “For the first time in the history of Nigeria, we have created a specific budget line for traditional sports. If you check the budget of the National Sports Commission, you will see a specific budget line meant to advance the cause of traditional sports.
“I am calling on traditional rulers across the country to play a greater role in promoting traditional sports, as they have to play a collective role with the relevant sports federations to expand the reach of traditional sports, just as they have done in promoting horse racing across the country.
“We cannot wait until somebody is already an adult before trying to introduce something to them, no. We need to engage in these sports right from school. It is not just about having sports festivals and local events. We should work to promote them and make them as international as we can.”
