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The Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Enoh, has said the Ministry will soon create a Diaspora Sports Desk, as a step further in rebranding sports development in Nigeria. He stated this when the chairman/CEO of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, hosted the duo of the
Naismith Basketball Memorial Hall of Famer, Lisa Leslie, and two-time WNBA All-Star, Chiney Ogwumike, in Abuja. According to a statement issued by NiDCOM on Wednesday, Minister Enoh described sports in the diaspora as a goldmine.
He expressed optimism that “the Nigerian sports industry will skyrocket into a platform that will promote networking and investment opportunities with who’s who in Nigeria and in the international sports arena especially with the Diaspora component which is a huge gold mine.”
On her part, Dabiri-Erewa stated that sports development in Nigeria will go a long way if its Diaspora Component was fully harnessed and developed through knowledge-sharing, expertise, skills and investment in the sector.
She described the likes of Leslie and Ogwumike as strategic and important for the advancement in sports development in Nigeria since they are embedded with skills and resources to groom home-grown talents as a way of volunteerism and giving back to Nigeria.
“Chairman, House Committee on Diaspora Affairs, Hon. Tochukwu Chinedu Okere expressed solidarity and applauded the WNBA Women Basketball Professionals especially the Nigerian-American, Chiney (Chinenye) Ogwumike, who has demonstrated unmitigated passion and love for her country, Nigeria,” the statement added.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, represented by Amb. Samson Itegboje noted that soft power through unity, diversity, hard work and collaboration was needed to achieve an objective of Diaspora Sports Development. Amb. Itegboje commended the WNBA Stars for following worthy values that resonate within them.
Lisa Leslie, the first Woman to dunk in basketball, said basketball has impacted so much for her and had paved the way to push for fairness and equity for women in the game, in terms of number, ethnicity and other factors. The American former WNBA player added that the youth are the future and they are passionately driven to help the youths in sports development.
The Nigeria-American Diaspora basketballer and broadcaster, Chiney (Chinenye) Ogwumike, who is one of the youngest among the US President’s Cabinet members, said she was very passionate about sports development especially basketball.
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