Nigeria, Rwanda to sign sports dev’t agreement

THE government of Nigeria and Rwanda will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in sports that will further strengthen the existing bilateral relationship between the two countries.

Friday, April 06, 2012
Rwandau2019s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Joseph Habineza. The New Times/File.

THE government of Nigeria and Rwanda will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in sports that will further strengthen the existing bilateral relationship between the two countries.This was made known by the Supervising Minister of Sports and Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi when he played host to the Rwandan High Commissioner to Nigeria, Joseph Habineza.Represented by the Director- General of the NSC, Chief (Dr.) Patrick Ekeji, the minister stated this against the backdrop that the Rwandan authorities had earlier made a request that the National Sports Commission partners with the Rwandan government in sports and social development.Dr. Ekeji reiterated that such partnership will no doubt engender mutual benefit to both countries as it will create a viable avenue to share experiences and reinforce each other in specific areas of need to further sports development, noting that the people of Nigeria and Rwanda share similar aspirations to overcome their challenges and excel in sports.The director general maintained that the NSC would continue to work with the Rwandan sports ministry to achieve a common vision for the African continent.Earlier in his remarks, Habineza stated that he was principally in the National Sports Commission to seek ways to discuss issues related to bilateral cooperation in sports and social development as part of efforts geared towards strengthening an excellent relationship between Nigeria and Rwanda.The partnership would afford both countries the opportunity to explore the possibilities of exchange in training programmes, technical expertise and manpower development that would ensure the socio-economic transformation of the two counties.