Ebonyi Sports Council Decries Manpower Shortage ‎

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎The Ebonyi State Ministry of Youth and Sports has identified manpower shortage as a major challenge confronting the State Sports Council. ‎

‎The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Comrade Hilary Obisie, disclosed this when the House of Assembly Committee on Youth Development and Sports, led by Hon. Victor Chidi-Nwoke, paid a familiarisation and oversight visit to the ministry. ‎ ‎Obisie said the workforce of the Sports Council had declined from over 69 personnel to about 23, calling for urgent measures to address the manpower gap.

‎ ‎Earlier, the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Chidi Onyia, commended Governor Francis Nwifuru for his support for youth and sports development in the state.

‎ ‎He cited the N30,000 monthly allowance for National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members serving in Ebonyi, the establishment of a female football team and various youth empowerment programmes as some of the administration's initiatives. ‎ ‎Onyia said the ministry was implementing school sports programmes, skills acquisition, youth empowerment initiatives and the annual state sports festival to engage young people and address drug abuse, crime and other social vices.

‎ ‎The commissioner also appealed to the committee to support the ministry's budget, stressing that the completion of the Olympic Stadium would position Ebonyi to bid for the hosting of the National Sports Festival. ‎ ‎Responding, the committee chairman, Hon. Chidi-Nwoke, said the visit was aimed at gaining a better understanding of the ministry's activities and challenges. ‎ ‎He urged the commissioner to submit relevant memoranda, including one seeking the recruitment of technical personnel for the Sports Council. ‎ ‎Chidi-Nwoke further disclosed that the committee's bill seeking the establishment of an annual state sports festival had passed first reading in the House. ‎ ‎Other committee members, Hon. Nwodo Aloysius Nwodo and Hon. Celestine Ogba, urged the ministry to build on existing reforms and assured that the committee would return for a comprehensive assessment of its activities.