NAN-S-2
Development
Christian Ogbonna
Yenagoa, Dec. 14, 2017 (NAN) Participants at the maiden Bayelsa Sports Summit have called for improvement and provision of sports facilities to move the sector forward and meaningfully engage budding talents in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the summit, tagged, “Bayelsa Sports: The Way Forward’’, was held on Wednesday in Yenagoa.
The stakeholders decried the way sportsmen and women in the state have suffered in terms of opportunities and facilities for training and called for an improvement.
Dr Peter Singabele, Chairman of the event, said sports was important to economic and social development and advised that the public and private sectors collaborated to move the sector forward.
Singabele said, “Sports is wealth, sports is health, so, there is need to provide a blueprint for the development of sports in the state.’’
Mr Chris Adekeme, the guest speaker, said the provision of facilities by the government, public and individuals was important to grooming of budding talents.
Adekeme, represented by Chris Odi, a Director in the State Ministry of Information, said that provision of facilities would also go a long way in terms of preparing for national and international events.
He listed other challenges facing sports development in the state as the use of over-age athletes, poor funding and lack motivation.
“There is need to improve on available facilities and create efficient opportunities for athletes to grow and make meaningful contributions to the society; there are talents wasting in this state because there is no opportunity to develop them.
“We should find means to engage our sports men and women with regular competitions and imbibe the spirit of selecting qualified sports administrators in all sports.
A participant, Mr Ebi Egbe, the Chief Executive Officer, Monimichelle Sports Construction Ltd., said the summit was a welcome avenue to harness ideas for sports development.
Mr Perekiye BuruBoyeye, the Commissioner for Sports, commended the summit organisers, saying the state was committed to the advancement of sports. (NAN)
OOC/PDE
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(Editing by Peter Ejiofor)