Nigeria Diaspora Talents Development Committee Partners Netball Federation To Spark Revolution

The newly inaugurated board of the Nigeria Netball Federation has partnered with the Nigeria Diaspora Talents Development Committee to harness the wealth of talented netball players of Nigerian descent excelling globally.

This announcement was made by the National Sports Commission Director-General, Hon. Bukola Olopade, during the inauguration of the NNF board at the NSC Headquarters, Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.

He stated, “I am aware of the immense effort put in by the NNF President, Dr. Mrs Esther Aluko, and the Chairman of the Diaspora Talents Development Committee, Dr. Tunde Adelakun, to ensure we secure many of these talented netballers worldwide to represent Nigeria. When you consider that many of the world’s top netballers are Nigerians, this is highly encouraging.”

“Dr. Adelakun and his team have been in constant contact with these netballers and the NNF, and they all express a desire to play for Nigeria. Dr. Adelakun was instrumental in lobbying us to grant netball federation status. He has been compiling this list for some time, in conjunction with Dr. Aluko. Honestly, their dedication and passion have given us the impetus to proceed.”

“We are confident that Nigeria will soon be a global force in netball. We will introduce the sport to schools, but as it is more prominent abroad, we have ready-made diaspora athletes to put us on the global map. In fact, that’s why we established the National Diaspora Talents Development Committee – to help us fully leverage these diaspora athletes.”

Dr. Adelakun believes that netball is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Diaspora Sports Initiative.

“In fact, we have a standby Nigeria Diaspora Netball team. We have been assembling them for some time and will soon showcase them, starting with the Nigeria Intermediate Games in October, where we will field the Team Diaspora,” he said.

Dr. (Mrs) Aluko is optimistic that netball will soon reclaim its rightful place in Nigerian sports.

“I have witnessed what netball once was in this country. During my formative years, it filled the courts of schools and colleges across several Nigerian states. It fostered discipline, built character, and produced young women who carried the lessons from the court into their careers, families, and communities. Then, gradually, it was abandoned – not by the players, but by the structures that should have supported them. This strategic plan is a formal declaration that the abandonment is over,” she enthused.