Dare meets stakeholders over implementation of sports policy

Sunday Dare, the minister of youth and sports development, has met with states’ commissioners and directors of sports to deliberate on the National Sports Industry Policy (NSIP).

The minister meeting was held in Asaba, Delta state, which is the venue of the ongoing National Sports Festival.

Last month, the federal executive council approved the NSIP which serves as a framework for guiding the reclassification of sports from recreation to business.

At the recent meeting, Dare outlined the three main pillars of the policy to include infrastructure, investments, and incentives.

The minister also said the episodic funding of sports by the government that was tied to sporting events would soon be history after the new policy gets implemented.

“Without infrastructure, we cannot develop sports. If we don’t invest in a business, it will die. Every industry needs incentives. We presented a bouquet of incentives to the federal executive council and the final details will be worked out between the sports ministry and the ministry of finance, federal inland revenue service and the Central Bank of Nigeria,” he said.

According to the minister, one of the incentives proposed and approved for a prospective investor in sports is a single-digit interest of 5% on loans from banks, as against the standard 21%.

“Tax holidays and rebates for specified time periods is one of the incentives for private investment in sports and this is likened to the tax credit scheme conceptualised by the Buhari administration for infrastructure development while state governments will be encouraged to give land and relax the documentation process for prospective investors,” he added.

“The Independent Athletes Welfare Fund is another major component of the policy that will require the Federal Government to provide the seed funds to be managed by an independent committee that will set the criteria and modalities for disbursement to prospective and shortlisted athletes

“A one- time grant to fix about 12 major sports facilities across the six geo-political zones is in the offing and when the renovation is completed, private sector players will be invited to manage the facilities for at least two years, in the first instance, with 20% of revenue generated paid to the government through the Treasury Single Account.”

Dare said the era of the sports federations looking solely to the government for funding was over.

He also promised to lead the way in providing a blueprint that would assist the states and federations to generate investment for sports development.