Enugu State will host the 23rd edition of the National Sports Festival after clinching the hosting rights following competitive bids by many states of the federation.
This is even as the state governor, Dr Peter Mbah, has been scheduled to present the much anticipated 2025 budget at the floor of the State House of Assembly on Tuesday.
The developments were disclosed to the Government House correspondents at the weekend by the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Barr Lloyd Ekweremadu, and the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Hon Chris Ozongwu, shortly after the State Executive Council meeting which was presided over by the governor.
This is the first time any state in the South East Nigeria will be hosting the prestigious festival since inception in 1973, making Enugu the premier state to set the stage open.
With Enugu winning the hosting rights, the commissioner reiterated the government’s commitment to deliver a world-class event that will enhance the festival’s legacy of excellence, inclusivity, international outlook, and discovery of potential sports stars.
Barr Ekweremadu attributed the emergence of Enugu state as the hosting state to Governor Mbah’s leadership strides and huge investment in the sports’ industry, adding that plans were on ground to upgrade and develop sports infrastructure in the state.
“The development strides that Enugu State is recording under the leadership of Governor Peter Mbah are a determining factor in winning the hosting rights. Council noted that in order to deliver a world-class sports festival, government must invest in upgrading and developing our sports infrastructure, particularly the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, and the Awgu Games Village,” he further stressed.
The sports festival is expected to attract over 15000 athletes that will be participating in the events to Enugu where talents will be showcased and new ones discovered.
Meanwhile, Hon Ozongwu said the draft of the 2025 Appropriation Bill was presented to the Executive Council where it was approved for presentation after rigorous evaluation and interrogation.
“Both the medium term expenditure framework (MTEF) and the budget proposal were unanimously approved by the council after much deliberation, evaluation and interrogation.
“This, therefore, sets the stage for His Excellency to submit the Appropriation Bill to the House of Assembly early next week. As is usual, this bill is subject to House approval,” the commissioner added.