By Omoyeni Ojeifo
Sports training could become part of Nigeria’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training, TVET, programme as the government explores new pathways to equip young people with practical, job-ready skills.
The initiative was conceived in a meeting between the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, and the Director-General of the National Institute for Sports, Comrade Philip Shaibu, where they discussed stronger collaboration between education and sports institutions.
Alausa identified basic sports training, coaching and sports-facility maintenance as areas that could be incorporated into the national TVET programme, subject to necessary approvals and programme requirements.
“Trainees could potentially access training through the Institute’s centres across eight states, while programmes lasting up to six months could be considered, Alausa said in a statement emailed to PerSecondNews on Friday by Ikharo Attah, Special Adviser Media and Communications to the minister.
The minister explained that further consultations would be required to establish the implementation framework.
He identified groundskeeping, pitch maintenance and games instruction as potential employment pathways for young Nigerians, noting that developing local expertise could reduce reliance on workers recruited from abroad.
Providing an update on the existing TVET programme, Alausa disclosed that more than 250,000 trainees had been trained or graduated through approximately 1,200 centres within the preceding 12 to 18 months.
He added that about 98 per cent of the centres were privately operated, with trainees receiving monthly stipends of ₦30,000.
The minister also highlighted a common curricular framework developed in collaboration with the National Universities Commission,(NUC), National Board for Technical Education, (NBTE), National Commission for Colleges of Education,(NCCE), sports experts, the private sector and National Sports Commission.
According to the minister, the framework covers six areas: Sports and Exercise Science; Coaching and Development Science; Sports Management and Business; Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation; Sports Technology and Data Analytics; and Sports Law.
“The framework was designed to support structured sports programmes in universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, broadening opportunities beyond traditional physical education,” the minister stated.
Alausa reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to working with the NIS and National Sports Commission to strengthen the connection between education, vocational training and sports development, under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
In his remarks earlier, the NIS Director-General, Comrade Philip Shaibu, commended the minister for the education reforms and renewed emphasis on technical and vocational skills development.
Shaibu, drawing on his experience as Deputy Governor of Edo State, stressed the importance of integrating sports into the school system.
He recalled Edo State’s initiative to allocate five per cent of the 30 per cent continuous assessment score in primary and secondary schools to sports.
He identified the shortage of qualified games masters and certified coaches as a major constraint to grassroots sports development.
The NIS DG also disclosed that the Institute had graduated more than 1,000 coaches within a year and expanded its operations across the six geopolitical zones.
“Our 2025–2035 strategic plan was designed to improve sustainability and reduce dependence on government funding,” he said.
Shaibu further highlighted efforts to revive coaching, fitness and executive certificate programmes, strengthen coach certification, train groundsmen and create career pathways for retiring athletes.
He appealed for the integration of the Institute’s basic training programme into the TVET framework, alongside stronger institutional support to expand its training capacity and financial sustainability.
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