Udu Takes Project 2027 To New Heights
By Akeem Busari
The Delta State Ministry of Basic & Secondary Education recently organised a two-day netball seminar for secondary school teachers in Udu Local Government Area.
The training event which was held at the premises of Ovwian Secondary School, Udu, was co-sponsored by the Francis and Fidelia Ibhawoh Foundation and CSED (Community Sports and Educational Development) Initiative.
The training event was attended by 58 teachers that were drawn from government and private secondary schools in Udu Local Government. As well as teachers from Army Day Secondary School Effurun in Uvwie LGA and College of Commerce Warri, who were specially invited by the event organisers. Teachers from Otokutu Secondary school Otokutu in Ughelli South LGA also attended the training event.
The training which included theory and practical sessions was delivered by coaches Edema Fuludu, Beauty Obamwonyi and Onome Fuludu, who are Netball Africa certified coaches.
They were supported by Ruth Opuene, who is a netball coach with Bayelsa State Sports Commission. Apart from being taught basic netball skills, the 7 positions of netball and the roles of each player, participants were taught how to mark a netball court.
The major highlight of the training course was the session on safeguarding of students and athletes that take part in sports. The netball training was concluded with a practice session involving two groups of teachers who tried to practicalize their new knowledge of the game.
The Chief Inspector of Education (C.I.E.) Udu LGA, Mr Samson Ochuko Omosonwhofa and the Principal of Ovwian Secondary School, Mrs Ochuko Gere, were full of praises for the organisers of the training event for bringing the game of netball to the attention of their enthusiastic teachers.
They urged the teachers to positively impart the knowledge gained from the training into the sport programmes of their various schools, for the benefit of their students and local community.
Netball is the only sport that was initially designed for girls and women, but in recent time, World Netball, has tried to make it a more inclusive sport by encouraging boys and men to play and enjoy the game.
World Netball is currently engaged with the IOC (International Olympic Committee) and the host city (Brisbane) of the 2032 Olympic Games in high level discussions in respect of featuring netball at the Games. The current highest level netball is being played is at the Commonwealth Games. There is also a Netball World Cup, the last edition was held in 2023 In Cape Town (South Africa).
It would be recalled that the game of netball has been on a malfunctioning life support machine in Nigeria, until CSED Initiative stepped in by launching their ‘Project 2027’ netball programme in July 2022. The Major aim of ‘Project 2027’, is to bring the game of netball to the attention of one million Nigerian school children by training and equipping one thousand teachers.
These teachers are expected to use their knowledge of netball and further online CPD training to introduce the game to their students. As well as use students’ participation in sports to promote learning and to meet the PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic) needs of their students.
At the end of the training event, certificates of attendance, free netball equipment (netball balls, rims and whistle) were freely distributed to the teachers. The Udu netball training recorded the highest number of teachers to be trained in netball in Nigeria.
It also takes the number of teachers and coaches trained so far by CSED Initiative and their sports for change partners to well above the 500 marks. Special mention has to be made about the role the Chief inspector of Education (C.I.E.) Udu LGA, Mr Samson Ochuko Omosonwhofa played in mobilising the teachers to attend this record-breaking netball training event.
