The Nigeria Netball Federation is intensifying its technical development drive as it prepares for the Intermediate Games, with Federation President, Dr. Oluwatoyin Aluko, declaring that the country’s netball revival must be built on properly trained coaches and umpires.
“We are putting in a lot of effort to equip the coaches and umpires,” Dr. Aluko said, as the federation outlined a nationwide programme of coaching and umpiring clinics designed to raise standards and strengthen the foundations of the sport.
In preparation for the Intermediate Games, the federation has already concluded coaching and umpiring clinics in the South-South and South-East Zones. Attention now shifts to the South-West, with its programme scheduled for the final week of August, before the Northern Zone takes its turn in the first week of September 2026.
The South-West programme, organised by Southwest Netball Stakeholders in conjunction with the National Sports Commission’s Southwest Zonal Office, will run from August 24 to 30, 2026, at Alake Sports Complex, Abeokuta.
The programme combines an Under-20 female netball competition with coaching and umpiring courses, creating an important pathway for both athletes and technical officials. The federation sees the combination as central to its wider objective of discovering talent while simultaneously improving the people responsible for developing and officiating that talent.
For coaches, the emphasis is on building knowledge, developing athletes and making a lasting impact. The umpiring course is designed to strengthen understanding of the rules, build confidence and prepare officials to take charge of matches with greater competence.
The South-West Under-20 competition is also expected to provide opportunities for talent discovery, exposure, recognition and player development, with teams from across the zone participating.
After the South-West programme, the technical development campaign moves north.
The Northern Zone Coaching and Umpiring Clinic is scheduled for August 31 to September 5, 2026, at the Indoor Sports Hall, MKO Abiola Stadium, Package B, Abuja, beginning daily at 9am.
Registration for the Northern Zone clinic is ₦25,000, while the South-West coaching and umpiring course is advertised at ₦20,000, with the latter covering training materials and certification.
For President Oluwatoyin Aluko, however, the programmes represent far more than a series of short courses. They are part of a deliberate effort to create the technical capacity needed to sustain the growth of Nigerian netball.
As the country prepares for the Intermediate Games, the federation is seeking to ensure that athletes emerging from its development programmes are supported by coaches with the right knowledge and officials capable of enforcing the laws of the game consistently.
The zonal approach also gives the federation an opportunity to take technical development closer to practitioners across the country rather than concentrating opportunities in one location.
With the South-South and South-East clinics already completed, the South-West programme coming up in the final week of August and the Northern Zone clinic following immediately after, the federation is demonstrating that its development plans are being pursued across the country.
The message from Dr. Aluko’s leadership is clear: Nigeria’s netball resurgence will not be built on players alone. It will require a stronger technical workforce, better officiating and a continuous pipeline of trained coaches capable of developing the next generation.
“Thank you for your understanding and support,” President Aluko said, appealing to stakeholders to continue backing the federation’s efforts.
With the Intermediate Games approaching, the technical groundwork is now being laid—zone by zone, coach by coach and umpire by umpire—for what the federation hopes will be a stronger and more competitive future for Nigerian netball.
