By PAMELA EBOH, Awka

The Anambra State Commissioner for Youth Development and Sports, Mr. Patrick Agha Mba, on Thursday, 24th September, 2026 said that the state sports has been repositioned in line with the peoples’ manifesto.

He made the disclosure during a press conference in his office at the old Government House in Awka, saying that Sports is not just a recreation, but a critical tool for youth empowerment, job creation, talent discovery, grassroot sports eco system and social cohesion.

He said: "To achieve this lofty vision, sports must have a solid foundation. You cannot have a thriving sports ecosystem without competent, trained, and certified manpower at the grassroots.

It Is for this reason that the Ministry has constituted a Committee to sanitize, structure and strengthen sports development at the base.

“Our checks have shown that many individuals parading as Sports Instructors, Sports Officers and Administrators in schools, academies, clubs and communities across the state are operating without any formal registration with the Ministry, without standardized knowledge of modern fundamentals of sports, sports safety, first aid, talent management and sports ethics. We cannot continue like that.

The Commissioner reeled out the three structural steps to include: First: Statewide Data Capture and Registration, Mandatory Refresher/Retraining Workshop and Certification.

Explaining further, Agha Mba said, “The Ministry will commence the mandatory registration and data capture of all Sports Instructors, Sports Officers and Sports Administrators in Anambra State. This database will help us to plan, support and engage you for state and national programmes.

“With effect from Monday 28th September 2026, the Forms for the registration will be available for collection at the Ministry of Education, ASUBEB, PPSSC, Sports Associations, Managers of the various state owned Stadiums and Ministry of Youth Development and Sports Desk Officers in all the Local Government Areas across the state. Collect, Fill and Submit at the same point.

“Mandatory Refresher/Retraining Workshop. All registered personnel will undergo a comprehensive retraining workshop. The workshop will have two components:

A) General Fundamentals of Sports – including sports administration, coaching principles, safety, anti-doping and safeguarding.

b) Specialized Technical Sessions – according to their various sports inclinations.

“Certification: At the end of this workshop, every participant will be duly certified by the Anambra State Ministry of Youth Development and Sports. Going forward, this certificate will be a basic requirement for anyone who wishes to practice as a sports instructor or administrator in any public institution or any sports facility in the State.”

The Commissioner added that to ensure no one is left behind, the workshop will be held at Zonal levels:

Anambra Central Senatorial Zone – Awka, Anambra North Senatorial Zone Onitsha and Anambra South Senatorial Zone – Aguata

He called on all sports instructors, whether in primary schools, secondary schools, private academies, fitness centres, community clubs and local governments, to take advantage of this window to get registered.

Acording to Agha Mba, only certified personnel are allowed to train the young people after the training.

He said: “The safety and future of our young people are paramount. For the Solution Agenda to succeed in sports, we must get it right at the grassroots. Let’s ensure that we comply accordingly.”