Ministry shifts National Sports Festival to January

The National Sports Festival (NSF) earlier slated for Benin from Dec. 3 to Dec.13, has been rescheduled to hold at the same venue from Jan.3 to Jan.17, 2021, an official has said.

The festival tagged Edo 2020, was initially slated for March, but had to be postponed to December due to the Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr John Joshua-Akanji, Special Adviser on Media to Minister of Youth and Development, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja that the decision was taken after a stakeholders’ meeting.

“The decision was arrived at after a virtual meeting between the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), and Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare,” he said.

Joshua-Akanji, however, said that it was also agreed at the meeting that all COVID-19 protocols would be observed during the festival.

NAN reports that Dare had earlier maintained that the festival was not postponed indefinitely.

“The NSF has not been postponed indefinitely. We are just trying to decide a date that would be convenient for athletes and for the conditions put in place to be met,” he said.

The minister said that he would make a final push to get the final and definite date for the festival.

NAN reports that some states, including the FCT have been in closed camping in preparation for the festival. (NAN)