• Super Admin
• 07 Mar, 2026

The effort by the Director-General of the National Institute for Sports (NIS), Comrade Philip Shaibu, to decentralise the institute is not only timely but also worthy of commendation. It is a bold and strategic move capable of resetting the institute to the original plan of the founding fathers. What the new NIS wants to do is to bring its valuable services closer to Nigerians by setting up campuses in the six geo-political zones. This deliberate attempt to lessen the burden of those interested in becoming trained coaches or certified sports administrators has drawn commendation from many, including critics of the comrade. We all know that before now, this opportunity was non-existent. Consequently, applicants had to cover thousands of kilometers from different parts of the country as they journeyed down to Lagos to be trained as coaches or sports administrators. Later on, applicants in the North heaved a sigh of relief when the Abuja centre of the institute was established. By doing so, the pressure on the NIS in Lagos also reduced. However, the current DG is going a step further to completely decentralise the institute. According to the plan announced by the leadership of the NIS, and barring any last minute glitches, academic activities will commence on April 12 at the zonal centres located in Benin City (South-South); Shagamu (South-West); Enugu (South-East); Jos (North-Central), Yola (North-east) and Kaduna (North-West). Interestingly, the 'sports loving' governors of the respective host states have keyed into this visionary move to support sports development in the country. This was evident by the warm reception accorded the DG and his entourage during each of the courtesy calls on the governors of Enugu, Edo, Kaduna, Plateau, Ogun and Adamawa states. Most of them pledged to give every necessary support to the zonal campuses. Established in 1974 by the administration of the then military head of state and commander in-chief of armed forces of Nigeria, General Yakubu Gowon (retd), the National Institute for Sports is a research and training institute. It is a parastatal of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports now called National Sports Commission (NSC). Among other things, it is saddled with the responsibilities of producing top-rated coaches, sports managers, sport scientists and conducting sports research. At its inception, the National Institute for Sports in Nigeria performed exceptionally well, operating as a "gold standard" for sports development in Africa. As a matter of fact, in the 1970s and early 1980s, the NIS was the premier sports institution on the continent. Many other African countries sent their coaches and administrators to Nigeria to be trained as it was the only institution of its kind in the region. In one of his numerous articles on the NIS, a pioneer student of the institute and one of Nigeria's most successful athletes, 'Mathematical' Segun Odegbami, succinctly captured how the institute began and the impact it made on sports in Nigeria and the African continent. "The NIS opened its doors to Nigerian sports and sports development with great expectations. The pioneer instructors and teachers were renowned sports experts drawn from various sports institutions around the world, with many of them coming from the German Institute of Sports in Hennef, after which the NIS was modelled, with a solid working partnership. "The entire National Stadium complex, freshly constructed with every conceivable state-of-the-art facilities for use during the 2nd All African games, the Ghana/Nigeria Sports Festival, and the First National Sports Festival, all following in quick succession in 1973, was the 'laboratory' of the NIS. "That means that at inception, the institute had facilities that covered all sports located around the massive National Sports Stadium complex, Surulere, and more. There were special training fields and courts, cinder and Astro-turf running tracks, a sophisticated sports science centre, the largest and most equipped gymnasium with modern electric saunas, physiotherapy facilities and a rich sports book library. "The hostels for students and athletes in national camps in various sports were the standard of 3-star hotels. From 1974 to 1976, the NIS prepared coaches and athletes for Nigeria's first proper 'assault' at the Olympic Games to take place in Montreal, Canada in 1976. "By 1976, two years into the life of the NIS, the institute had produced a pool of some of the best athletes in the history of Nigerian sports at the time, in boxing, athletics, swimming and football, ready to take on the world at the Montreal Olympic Games in Canada. "The NIS was working. The formula was a careful balance of best coaches and best guinea pigs, breeding and producing the best athletes using some of the best facilities in the world," wrote the 'football mathematician.' Unfortunately, as the years rolled by, the institute began to decline in stature due to poor funding and mismanagement of the world-class facilities that once stood it out as a model in Africa. The abandonment of the National Stadium, Surulere by successive governments precipitated the fall of the institute. It invariably became a shadow of its old self. However, the appointment of Comrade Shaibu is proving to be the much needed solution to the myriad of problems that continue to threaten the existence of the institute. It is, therefore, a good thing that institutional restructuring, enhanced sports education and certification programmes, athlete development pathways, infrastructure upgrades and governance reforms have been prioritised by Shaibu. Personally, I am happy that the new NIS has deemed it necessary to take knowledge to the doorsteps of aspiring coaches and sports administrators. If not for the centre in Abuja, most of my friends who are ex-footballers in Benue State wouldn't have realised their ambition to transition into coaching. Even the cost of transportation to Lagos alone would have killed their dreams. Indeed, by opting to decentralise the institute, Comrade Shaibu deserves commendation for taking the bull by the horns. It is not going to be easy, but I believe that if given the necessary support by the federal government and the host state governments, this audacious move will yield positive fruits for the good of Nigerian sports. However, the khaki-loving comrade should rush slowly, for anything worth doing is worth doing well. Establishing these zonal campuses is one thing, getting them to function optimally is another thing. Before now, the institute operated only two campuses, but it will now be dealing with at least eight centres across different regions, which will certainly require more funding and strict monitoring to ensure that uniform standard is attained and sustained. Source: https://dailytrust.com/decentralisation-of-national-institute-for-sports-is-game-changer/