African Sports Industry
Sport Nigeria unveils bold initiative for African sports industry with upcoming investment summit
Sport Nigeria Ltd/Gte an organization dedicated to redefining cross-cultural engagements within the sports industry and enabling the development of sports as a viable business sector in Nigeria, has revealed plans to host a Summit for investors that will ensure the delivery of a diverse spectrum of sports goods and services across Africa in November 2024.
CEO of Sports Nigeria Ltd/Gte, Nkechi Obi disclosed this during a press conference to commence the esteemed Africa Soft Power 2024 conference in Kigali, Rwanda.
Tagged ‘Sports Africa Investment Summit” and scheduled for November 19th and 20th 2024, the summit will serve as a convergence point for investors, sports infrastructure stakeholders and value chain providers and act as a catalyst for fostering domestic consumption of locally-produced sports content in Africa.
According to Nkechi. Discussions will revolve around investment strategies, market expansion, and holistic enhancement of the sports value chain across Africa while highlighting the urgent need to fortify Africa’s sports infrastructure to retain talent and stimulate economic growth. “We want to aggregate, facilitate and enable investments into the sports industry value chain and deliver commercial and social impact benefits to industry stakeholders and consumers. Nkechi said.
“ In Nigeria alone, over 10 million talented footballers exist, yet Europe can only absorb a fraction of them. Without robust industry development, we risk perpetuating a cycle of talent exploitation akin to a second slavery,” cautioned Nkechi. “The Sports Africa Investment Summit marks a pivotal step towards reshaping Africa’s sports landscape and harnessing our continent’s immense potential.”
Nkechi also emphasized the critical role of private sector engagement in translating policy frameworks into tangible outcomes within the sports sector. “Sports Nigeria emerged from the private sector in response to the formulation of a new national sports industry policy. We recognize that the crux of the challenge lies not in the absence of policies but in their effective implementation,” stated Nkechi. “Our mandate is crystal clear: to aggregate investments that facilitate the development of vital sports infrastructure, ensuring that Nigeria’s sports industry generates an estimated 3 million jobs over the next decade, alongside the creation of 3,000 community facilities.”
This historic announcement coincides with the Africa Soft Power Summit, renowned for its role in advancing African leadership across key socio-economic spheres. Notable speakers at the event include H.E. Dr. Joyce Banda, Former President of Malawi; Honourable Sandrine Umutoni, Minister of State for Youth & Arts, Rwanda; HRH Nnaemeka A. Achebe, Obi of Onitsha; Temi Popoola, CEO, Nigeria Exchange Limited; Uche Ofodile, CEO, MTN Benin; Nana Baffour, Nana Baffour, Co-Founder, NVH Studios and Executive Chairman, Enda; Michaella Rugwizangoga, Chief Tourism Officer, Rwanda Development Board; Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, Executive Chairman & Founder of Africa Prosperity Network amongst others.
