PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
Nigeria: Govt. approves US$ 10 million for Nigeria's 2014 World Cup campaign
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - The Nigerian Federal Government has approved 1.6 billion Naira (about US$ 10 million) for the 2014 World Cup campaign of its national football team, the Super Eagles, the privately-owned Punch newspaper reported Friday.
According to the paper, the amount was approved as a ‘special grant’ for the World Cup, which makes it separate from the budgetary allocation of the Nigeria Football Federation as contained in the 2014 national budget.
A breakdown of the approved sum shows that the money will not only cover the Super Eagles' participation in the finals of the FIFA competition, but will also cover their training programmes in the build-up to the event.
The Super Eagles are billed to camp in the US before flying into Brazil for the Mundial.
The Minister of Sports, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the government was giving the country’s participation in the World Cup the highest level of attention with a view to making the team excel.
He said, “We are aware of the financial challenges of Nigerian teams while preparing for big events. It is not just about football but sports in general, including the Commonwealth Games and the World Youth Olympics, also coming up this year. In view of the challenges posed by the budgetary process, we had to work ahead to get funding for the teams in a way that funds will not hamper the entire plans.
“President Goodluck Jonathan has keenly followed the problems over the years and that has made it possible for us to find a solution that will be beneficial to the athletes and their aspirations and the entire country at large.”
The paper said there aire indications that the minister was also working to get extra funds from independent sources to complement what the government had given.
-0- PANA VAO 28Feb2014
According to the paper, the amount was approved as a ‘special grant’ for the World Cup, which makes it separate from the budgetary allocation of the Nigeria Football Federation as contained in the 2014 national budget.
A breakdown of the approved sum shows that the money will not only cover the Super Eagles' participation in the finals of the FIFA competition, but will also cover their training programmes in the build-up to the event.
The Super Eagles are billed to camp in the US before flying into Brazil for the Mundial.
The Minister of Sports, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the government was giving the country’s participation in the World Cup the highest level of attention with a view to making the team excel.
He said, “We are aware of the financial challenges of Nigerian teams while preparing for big events. It is not just about football but sports in general, including the Commonwealth Games and the World Youth Olympics, also coming up this year. In view of the challenges posed by the budgetary process, we had to work ahead to get funding for the teams in a way that funds will not hamper the entire plans.
“President Goodluck Jonathan has keenly followed the problems over the years and that has made it possible for us to find a solution that will be beneficial to the athletes and their aspirations and the entire country at large.”
The paper said there aire indications that the minister was also working to get extra funds from independent sources to complement what the government had given.
-0- PANA VAO 28Feb2014
