By Akanimo Kufre
The Minister for Youth and Sports, Sen. Owan Enoh on Tuesday expressed delight with the country’s quick cricket progress.
He was speaking to our reporter following the arrival of about 100 youngsters in Abuja for the Nigeria Cricket Federation, NCF/PwC U17 Boys and Girls finals, taking place from Thursday, February 15th to 19th, 2024.
“Cricket is growing fast in Nigeria and for the second year in a row, Nigeria was singled out for a development award and as one of the countries for the World Cup Trophy Tour.
“The leadership of the Cricket Federation is doing me credibly well to grow the Sport. ICC has also singled out Nigeria and the US as countries they want to grow and promote cricket.”
The event would be hosted on the twin cricket ovals at Package ‘B’ of Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja. The handlers of Nigeria U17 cricket teams largely depend on the new potential players that the event unfolds.
The National Under 17 Championship is a one-stop event to spot and recruit youngsters into club activities in different leagues across the country.
The Secretary General of the Federation, Mohammed Sanni, said the sports ministry, is in support of the project and particularly recognizes the impact the event has generated at the grassroots where cricket development has impacted the kids’ social lives.
“Cricket is one of the few sports that has been able to achieve consistently a national outlook through its developmental effort. More importantly, girl-child participation has steadily reached eighty percent in the last four years too.
“The PwC/NCF 17 has been a great model for sports development because of all the boxes it ticks in the process.” The cricket federation scribe ascertained.
