Other Sports
Front line NGO in Edo, CSED donates netball equipment to government
Community Sport and Educational Development (CSED) has donated netball equipment to the Edo State Government through the Edo State Sports Commission.
The Permanent Secretary of the Commission, Mrs Sabina Chikere recieved the equipment on behalf of the government.
Also present at the event was the Director of facilities Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Victor Edokpayi and some members of the Sports Commission.
This donation was made in preparation for the NGO’s formal launching of “Project 2027” in Edo State.
The goal of PROJEC 2027” is to bring netball to the attention of one million Nigerian school girls before the end of 2027. This the NGO believe will be achieved through the training of 1200 P.E. teachers who will then impart the knowledge gained into their students. The trained P.E. Teachers will be provided with free netball starter pack (netball balls, rims/nets, finger-held whistles and training bibs).
Presenting the netball equipment on behalf of CSED Trustees, the National Coordinator of CSED, former Super Eagles’ player, Edema Fuludu said that the founder of CSED Initiative, Cornelius Ehimiaghe is keen to make Edo State the hub of netball development in Nigeria.
“Netball is a girl-child/women exclusive sport and it can be used to empower the girl child, promote their health, improve their level of literacy and the general well-being of our youths.
“Especially the girls. Netball is played by more than twenty million people all over the world, Netball is a usual feature in the Commonwealth Games and the organizers of the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane (Australia) is currently exploring with the IOC; the possibility of including netball as one of the events of the 2032 Olympic Games.”
CSED Initiative is of the view that we cannot talk about gender balancing in the sport ecosystem in Nigeria, when netball has been neglected and is almost unheard of in the sporting calendar at both the grassroots and national level. “In the 1960s and 70s, netball was played in girls’ secondary school and Teachers Training Colleges all over Nigeria.
At that point in time, female football was a novelty event, while netball was vying for superiority with athletics and handball. Among female students in Nigeria, netball was more widely played than basketball in Nigeria in the 1960s and 70s.”
It is interesting to note that since March 2015, when a representative of CSED Initiative held a formal meeting with staff of the International Netball Federation (INF) in their headquarters in Manchester, CSED Initiative effort at reviving the game of netball in Nigeria has been deliberately blocked by some sports administrators in Abuja who will not do anything to promote the game, but will want to use netball to maintain their post-retirement relevance in the sport ecosystem in Nigeria.
In spite of these hindrance, CSED Initiative has not relented in their effort to promote the right of Nigerian girls to play netball. “Before the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic, we trained 24 Netball Africa coaches, we built a netball court at IDPs Camp Uhogua (Edo State) and “PROJECT 2027” is going to be the biggest grassroots sport mobilization programme in the Nigeria sport ecosystem.
In this regard, we will be collaborating with all progress conscious individuals, NGOs, Foundations, corporate organizations, Ministry of Women Affairs, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Youth and Sport, NYSC, Sports Commissions, local government authorities, sports Department of tertiary institutions and the media to promote the right of the Nigerian girl to play netball.
Some of the netball equipment that was donated to the Edo State Government include: sixty (60) netball rims/net, sixty (60) complete sets of green and purple training bibs, one hundred and twenty (120) netball balls and one hundred and twenty (120) finger-held whistles.
The donated equipment will be used in the training of 30 P.E. Teachers. Within the next one year, CSED Initiative intends to train 100 P.E. Teachers in Edo State.
This basic training programmes will be held in the three senatorial areas of Edo State and the two days training manual which Mary Waya (current INF Ambassador and coaches’ trainer) has specifically developed for “PROJECT 2027” will be used in the training of the P.E. Teachers.
The safeguarding of athletes and students will also be imbedded in the training of netball P.E. Teachers.
In her reaction, Mrs Sabina Chikere said she on behalf of the Sports Commission’s chairman, Yusuf Ali who was unavoidably absent received the donated items with joy and promised to follow government’s cardinal initiative of making Edo State Nigeria’s leading sports destination.
She stated that the Edo State government will be happy to partner with CSED to promote the development of grassroots netball and promised to support the implementation of “PROJECT 2027” in Edo State.
Pastor Enoch A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) has unveiled a full-size stadium and an Olympic-size 50-metre swimming pool at the Peaceville International Academy, located within the Redemption City of God, Ogun State.
The esteemed cleric was accompanied by his wife, Pastor Folu Adeboye, along with top church leaders including Pastor Joseph Obayemi; RCCG National Overseer, Pastor Sunday Akande, and the management of Peaceville International Academy led by Head of School Dolapo Fatoki.
The event was graced by several board members of the school, including Leke Adeoye, Olugbenga Omojola, Ayoola Jolayemi, Noah Osato, and Mrs Busola Ogunsiji.
Reflecting on his past, Pastor Adeboye lamented the lack of such facilities during his university days and the general scarcity of quality sports amenities across the country.
“This kind of well-grassed stadium and serene environment were not available in universities during our time. Remarkably, God has made this possible in a secondary school, showing that He is on our side,” he remarked.
He offered prayers for those who contributed to the realization of these facilities and expressed his vision for the school to become a global brand.
In her welcome address, Pastor Mrs. Adeboye, the founder of the college, described the institution as a legacy made possible by God’s support.
She thanked her husband for his unwavering support in making the school a reality and emphasized the importance of the sports facilities in moulding Godly champions.
The unveiling ceremony also featured a novelty match to celebrate Pastor Adeboye’s 83rd birthday, with him performing the ceremonial kick-off for the match between Redemption City FC and Region 1 FC. The home team triumphed with a 4-0 victory.
Head of School Dolapo Fatoki highlighted that the facilities would be judiciously used to enhance the physical well-being of students and position the school as a hub for sports development in Ogun State and Nigeria.
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Championship promotion chasers Burnley clocked up 1,000 minutes without conceding a league goal as they drew 0-0 at Preston North End on Saturday to stay third in the table.
It was Burnley’s 24th Championship clean sheet of the season and their 11th in a row — a new English second-tier record.
In 33 Championship games their miserly defence has been breached only nine times and no opposition player has scored against them in the league since Dec. 21.
Burnley keeper James Trafford has faced only 21 shots on target in achieving his 11 successive clean sheets — including two penalties which he saved against Sunderland.
Scott Parker’s side need just one more clean sheet to match the Championship record of Queen’s Park Rangers in 2010-11.
“It’s something we pride ourselves on. We’re proud of being hard to beat and if you can’t win games, don’t lose them,” Burnley midfielder Josh Cullen told the club’s website.
“We come away with a point thanks to that defensive record and being solid again here at a tough place.”
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A UK-based sports recycling charity, Lord’s Taverners has donated sports kits and equipment worth over 30 million naira to the CSED (Community Sport and Educational Development) Initiative.
The donated kits and equipment weighed 998 kilograms. It is not the first time such a donation was made.
It would be recalled that since 2019, this is the fifth batch of sports kit donations that Lord’s Taverners have donated to CSED Initiative.
In total, CSED Initiative has received sports kits weighing over three thousand kilogrammes from Lord’s Taverners.
Most of this batch of donated sports kit items are for cricket, netball, badminton, football, casual sportswear and tracksuits.
Some of the prominent institutions that have benefitted from the kits that were donated by Lord’s Taverners in the past are Edo State Cricket Association, the cricket team of ABU Zaria, the cricket team of IDPs Uhogua, Cameroonian refugees in Ogoja (Cross River State).
Furthermore, some selected schools in Delta, Edo, Akwa Ibom and Taraba States have benefitted from the free cricket kits that were donated by Lord’s Taverners to CSED Initiative.
In a recent email correspondence between a Trustee of CSED Initiative, a Project Manager of Lord’s Taverners, a representative of the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) acknowledged the role the kits that Lord’s Taverners donated to CSED Initiative played in the development of some of the cricketers who recently played in the Nigerian female cricket team at the recently completed T20, U-19 Cricket World Cup in Malaysia.
Nine out of these fifteen cricketers are players from Edo State whose cricket Association received 250 kilogrammes of donated cricket kits from CSED Initiative in April 2019.
Furthermore, CSED has also donated cricket items to a cricket project that has supported the development of the two cricketers from Akwa Ibom State who featured for Nigeria in the Malaysian tournament.
During an interview with sports reporters, a representative of CSED Initiative stated that the new batch of donated equipment from Lord’s Taverners will enable them to empower three thousand children and youths in respect of supporting some of their basic sports kit needs. The donated kits will enable CSED Initiative to train three hundred P.E. Teachers in 2025. “So, it is going to be a win-win situation for grassroots sports.”
However, CSED Initiative have been informed that the Lord’s Taverners sports kits recycling project is going to close in March 2025, as a result of financial constraint. The National Coordinator of CSED Initiative stated that this news was a huge shock to them, and the sports recycling community all over the world.
Lord’s Taverners has a global base of sports for change NGOs that they have supported in the past few decades. Though Lord’s Taverners was mainly set up as a cricket charity, it has over the years supported other sports at the grassroots level.
“We in CSED Initiative will forever remain grateful for the support we have received from Lord’s Taverners. Especially in respect of the sport of netball.
They have supported us with balls, bibs, netball jerseys, T-shirts and skirts.
These donated netball kits gave us the courage to strive to revive the game of netball in Nigeria through our ongoing: “Project 2027” drive where we have trained and equipped more than three hundred and seventy P.E. Teachers and community leaders.”
While receiving the donated items in their Niger Delta base, the National Coordinator of CSED Initiative assured Dave Pemberton (Project Manager of Lord’s Taverners) that the sports kits will be distributed for free to selected schools and vulnerable community groups (IDPs and asylum seekers/refugees) they currently work with, as well as new sets of schools and communities who will be expected to put the donated kit into good use.
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