The National Orientation Agency (NOA) has called for strategic collaboration with the National Sports Commission (NSC) to harness the unifying power of sports in promoting patriotism, cohesion, and national identity among Nigerians.
The Director-General of NOA, Malam Lanre Issa-Onilu, made the call during a courtesy visit to the NSC Chairman, Malam Shehu Dikko, on Thursday in Abuja. Issa-Onilu was represented by Mr David Akoji, Director of Special Duties and State Operations.
He congratulated Dikko on the innovative progress being made within the NSC and the broader sports sector and emphasised the unique potential of sports to foster unity.
“We want to leverage the unifying effect of sports on Nigerians. Too often, people focus on our divisions our fault lines. But at NOA, we believe that Nigerians love Nigeria, and this love is most visible during international sporting events,” Issa-Onilu said.
He noted that during such events, Nigerians do not care about the background of the athlete scoring a goal whether Christian, Muslim, Igbo, Hausa, or Yoruba as long as it benefits the nation.
“That collective spirit is the foundation for national unity and cohesion. It can be translated to other areas of our national life.”
He stated that the NOA intended to build on this by creating narratives around Nigerian resilience, capacity, and potential through sports.
“We seek to partner closely with the NSC to ensure that sport becomes a deliberate tool for promoting patriotism and unity,” he added.
Issa-Onilu also introduced Dikko to the National Identity Project, a key initiative of President Bola Tinubu’s administration. He explained that sports would provide an ideal platform to drive this initiative and promote the National Value Charter a framework rooted in mutual commitment between the government and citizens.
Addressing national pride among athletes, Issa-Onilu noted that some struggled to recite the national anthem.
“We have brought 5,000 copies of the anthem to encourage athletes to memorise and recite it with pride and patriotism.”
He also clarified common misconceptions about the national flag:
“While other countries have green in their flags, Nigeria’s flag is emerald green 2.0, white, and emerald green 2.0 and it is a continuum, not stitched together.”
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In response, NSC Chairman Shehu Dikko affirmed the immense potential of the sports sector to transform the economy and unite the nation.
“Sports can create millions of jobs through its value chain. For example, in the UK, when 22 players are on the field, over three million people engage with the event buying tickets, fuelling cars, lodging in hotels, eating at restaurants, and subscribing to watch matches on TV.”
He noted that sport is one of the country’s key economic drivers and has the potential to significantly contribute to the GDP if properly harnessed.
Dikko also highlighted regional developments, stating:
“Abia State is working on an Economic Zone focused on sportswear production — from cotton to textile to tailoring. This shows how sports cut across various sectors.”
He described sports as a national asset:
“When it comes to international competitions, everyone becomes simply Nigerian. We need to work with NOA at all levels, and we are ready to collaborate on strategy and purpose.”
Dikko expressed appreciation for the 5,000 anthem copies:
“This will help, especially for our foreign-based athletes. As they go into camp, we will ensure they receive them.”
He gave updates on national sporting activities, noting that the Super Falcons were currently in Morocco, the Tigress basketball team was in Ivory Coast, and Nigerian students were participating in the Global University Games abroad.
The event concluded with the symbolic presentation of the national flag, copies of the national anthem, and other NOA publications.
