Some years before independence, only few Nigerians had taken the international sports field by storm.. The likes of Emmanuel lfejuna who won a gold medal in high jump during the Commonwealth Games in 1954, Hogan Kid Bassey who became the world featherweight boxing champion in 1957 and Dick Tiger who won the middleweight crown and later the world light heavyweight crown, readily come to mind.

50 years after independence the story is different, Nigerian sportsmen and women have entrenched Nigeria’s name firmly on the map of great sporting nations.

Sports began to take serious roots in the country in 1963 when the National Sports Commission (NSC) began to function under Abraham Ordia as secretary. The 60s was a period of laying foundations and the only visible achievement was the qualification of Nigeria’s Green Eagles for the Olympic Games held in Mexico in 1968.

Kanu

In 1973, Nigeria hosted the 2nd All-Africa Games in Lagos and also introduced the national sports festival as a way of discovering athletes to represent the country try in continental and international meets. The first meeting in Lagos attracted about 6,000 athletes.

The 1970’s also witnessed tremendous achievements. Nigeria’s senior football team won a gold medal in the 2nd All-Africa games while the country’s contingent to the Games came second on the medals table. 1976 and 1977 saw the country earning victories in continental championships through IICC Shooting Stars and Rangers International of Enugu in the Cup Winners Cup Competition.

Chioma Ajunwa

The country’s record of achievements continued in the 1980s with series of achievements especially in football. The bronze medals won in 1976 and 1978 in the African Cup of Nations were improved upon in 1980. The Christian Chukwu led Green Eagles won the Cup for the first time at the National Stadium in Surulere. In 1984 and 1988, Nigeria again got to the finals of that championship but lost to Cameroon on both occasions.

Nigeria’s Flying Eagles qualified for the first time to represent Africa in a Junior World Cup in Mexico. They did not go beyond the first round having lost 3-0 to Brazil, but they defeated USSR 1-0 and held Holland to a barren draw.

Nigeria’s heroics continued to soar through the 80s and 90s with numerous accomplishments, especially in football. The Golden Eaglet, made up of player below the age of 17, won the Kodak U-17 World Cup, now known as FIFA U-17 World Cup, in China in 1985 and the Flying Eagles, almost did the same at the Saudi ‘89 U-20 World Cup, losing in the final to Portugal.

Beatrice Utondu, Faith Idehen, Mary Onyali and Christy Opara Thompson celebrating after winning bronze in the Women's 4x100m Relay at Barcelona ’92 Olympics

Nigeria also won silver and bronze medals in the male and female categories of 4 x100m at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992.

The heroics of Nigeria’s U-23 Dream Team at the Atlanta ‘96 Olympics, where they won gold medal in the football event cum Chioma Ajunwa’s glorious feat by winning a gold medal in long jump, put an icing on the cake for Nigerian sport at the world’s stage.

Other landmarks recorded by Nigeria in international sports, such as Eaglets’ triumph in Japan ‘93 and Eagles’ qualification for the World Cup for the first time in USA ‘94 cannot be overlooked.

Above all, Nigeria’s top position at the 2003 All Africa Games, stands the country out as a land that is blessed with human talents and natural resources.

The nation has also produced great sports stars like Hakeem Olajuwon in Basketball, Nduka Odizor in lawn tennis, Mike Okpara, a former world wrestling champion, Atanda Musa, Rashidi Yekini, Stephen Keshi and Richard Owubokiri who have made the nation proud these 50 years.

In spite of these success stories, the country has suffered setbacks. Nigerian football suffered a major failure  in 1977 when  a Godwin Odiye’s own-goal stopped the country from attending her first World Cup in 1978. Other disappointments were in 1981 and 1989 when Nigeria was stopped by Algeria and Cameroon respectively under painful circumstances.

In 1989, FIFA hammer fell on the country and she was subsequently banned for two years from participating in junior competitions due to discrepancies in ages of players who had played for Nigeria.

The Seoul Olympics of 1988 was another disaster for Nigerian athletes. Like in 1980, the athletes came back without a single medal. Worst still was the Green Eagles team which had gone to the Games as favorite but completely lost out. The death of Dele Udoh, Nigeria’s most promising 400m gold medal hope in 1979 took the sports  fraternity by surprise. He was killed by the police in a checkpoint in Lagos when he came to participate in an athletics meeting from the USA.

Also in 1979, a clash between supporters of UCC Shooting Stars FC of lbadan and Bendel Insurance of Benin after a Challenge Cup (now called Federation Cup) semi-final match in Lagos in which the Benin team lost 2-0 led to the death of 26 persons. Another tragedy that hit the soccer world was the death of a Sam Okwaraji who slumped and died at the National Stadium in Lagos, during a World Cup qualifier against Angola. It was a horrifying experience as Nigerians had begun to appreciate not only the football skills of the late player but his patriotic zeal which were unparalleled.

Last year, Nigeria failed to reach the finals of the Nations Cup and only this year, the setbacks continued when Team Nigeria emerged third at the 10th All Africa Games held in Maputo, Mozambique. In athletics, the country’s contingent to the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea, returned without a single medal.

Despite the setbacks of Nigerian sports these past 5i years, the country has remained a darling nation to sports lovers at the global stage

When you see the figure 419, your brain automatically registers online scams, financial crime and impersonation associated with Nigerians. The number ‘419’ refers to the article of the Nigerian Criminal Code (part of Chapter 38: ‘Obtaining Property by false pretences; Cheating’) dealing with fraud.

However, Nigerians still show several positive characteristics and traits other than the ‘Advance Fee Fraud’. In response to this, ‘The 419Positive Project’ was initiated, with the aim of generating four hundred and nineteen positive attributes about Nigeria and Nigerians.

So 100 volunteers and bloggers where enlisted to share reasons why they like Nigeria. These reasons echo the voices of Nigerians, with resonating similar themes. The campaign is being facilitated in partnership with ‘The 419Positive Project’.

Check the list out:

Nigeria – The Land of Potential and Opportunity

1. Africa is the future, Nigeria is her giant – It’s obvious to the world that global prosperity going forward will hinge heavily on Africa and Asia. I love Nigeria because we are divinely, strategically located and placed in Africa.

2. Nigeria is the most populous black nation – and a buying one at that. From a capitalist point of view, this makes for a great investment opportunities.

3. Nigeria is the land of opportunity. It is pretty much a virgin market with capacity for many business ideas. If you have a brilliant idea and the funding, you will make so much money in Nigeria. Why? There are over 160 million people and a large informal market of consumers. If you identify the right market segment and establish a business, your profit margin will go through the roof. For instance, at the advent of mobile phones in the country, a South African company, MTN, came into the country as one of the first foreign investors. It is said that the company makes more profits from Nigeria are higher than its home country.

4. An expanding commercial market. Lagos is currently the second most populous city in Africa, following Cairo. The United Nations predicts that by 2025 Lagos will be the 11th largest city in the world.

5. The UK government in 2011, described Nigeria is the world’s fourth fastest growing economy with solid growth expected in the next five years.

6. The size (population) of the country, Nigeria, makes it a potential business/salesperson’s paradise (over 160 million potential consumers — the largest market in Africa).

7. Nigeria’s market is indeed very promising. With over 160 million potential customers you simply can’t go wrong.

8. Nigeria is Africa’s largest mobile market with over 85 million subscribers.

9. Recent developments in the payments space means that online and mobile transactions will make a huge footprint in the coming years. There’s never been a better time to get Nigerian businesses taking advantage of the internet and the wide range of opportunities that come with it. This works especially well for those selling products.

10. Nigeria is the largest market in Africa for Guinness and the second largest globally, after UK, since it overtook Ireland in 2007. Nigeria owing to its market size, is predicted to take the lead ahead of the UK by 2014.

11. Nigeria, previously viewed as a risky investment environment, is gradually becoming the investors target especially with the growing middle class. The Fast Moving Consumer Goods market in 2011 has experienced much expansion with multinationals like Coca-Cola Hellenic, Heineken and PZ Cussons increased investments in their local units.

12. We make frighteningly good use of opportunity when it presents itself. Take a look at communication and the adoption of technology. I daresay that there is no country that adopted faster. If we light up Nigeria today, I assure you, we’ll leap ahead twenty years in two.

13. Another reason to like Nigeria is because of the future we can see. Because people are becoming more enlightened each day and the youth is more hands-on than ever before; I can be pretty confident that not too long from now, this should be a country to be reckoned with. I like Nigeria for the future I see.

14. Nigeria is not only about size, it’s about numbers and companies that are not selling in Nigeria are missing out on huge market.

15. I like Nigeria because it is a land of endless opportunities and possibilities. Nigeria is one country I believe the world is yet to experience it true potentials. I believe Nigerians are sharp, brilliant and accommodating people. Giving the right enabling environment the world will marvel at what Nigeria will become.

16. The taxation system is a reason to like Nigeria. The Federal government doesn’t impose heavy tax on the labour force. This encourages foreigners to come to Nigeria to work, for there is good pay as well as returns. For instance, in Germany there is dog tax, however in Nigeria, you’re free to own as many dogs as you please without having to bother about paying the government for your pets.

17. You can sell weave to a woman with perfectly good hair on her head. With over 160 million people making up Africa’s biggest consumer market, you can sell nearly any type of product or service in Nigeria and still have a huge market! People here are just hungry for excellent products – and they’ve got the buying power to back it up!

18. We confound acclaimed economic models, yet you ignore us at your own peril. In economics, sociology, psychology and politics, Nigerian case studies are worth pursuing.

19. Unlimited data (well, nearly unlimited) for the Blackberry Internet Service, is relatively cheap when compared with what my colleagues pay in the US and the UK. N3000 for a month? That sounds like a deal, and is especially useful for mobile small businesses. It really helps, considering that the price of regular broadband internet versus what one actually gets is rather expensive.

20. The fact that Nigeria currently lags behind so much – in infrastructure and developmental terms – hints at the size of the potential for innovation and transformation, and at the huge number of vacancies that exist for ‘transformers’. What I think this means is that the world will be hearing a lot about Nigeria and high-achieving Nigerians (in the public and private sectors) in the near future.

21. The agricultural potential of Nigeria will make her the envy of developed nations in years to come.

22. I left a seed of black-eyed bean in my kitchen sink, next day it was already sprouting. Where else in the world does that occur except Nigeria?

23. Our business environment is very welcoming and full of untapped business opportunities.

24. Our youth population is a force that can be used for good, and if empowered, will drive Nigeria’s small scale industries potential.

25. Shopping in traffic jams – the ultimate time saver! The hawker’s market is one that begs economic research.

26. Nigeria is one of the fastest growing countries in the music and film industry. This is good for investors.

27. There are LOADS of opportunities. It’s virgin ground for loads of innovation and new unique ideas.

28. Nigeria is a developing country and this creates an avenue for investment which will foster growth.

29. Nigeria is the future of the world. Increasing attention from foreign economies is proof positive for this.

30. There are many economic opportunities, and recent global consulting company reports point to Nigeria and Africa as the future.

31. Nigeria is the land of opportunity, where you can invest in loads of things {Economic investment}.

32. Our man power, which has made foreigners form an alliance with us to aid and promote industries and industrial investment.

33. NIGERIA is that country where you can make good money from businesses with fair tax costs.

34. Entrepreneurs can flourish in Nigeria. There is a mass market of consumers and many business opportunities.

35. Innovation and world-changing-ideas abound in infinite quantities in this great country. The only boundary is support.

AS the twin evils of bad governance and corruption continue to bedevil Nigeria’s underdevelopment, President Goodluck Jonathan, on the country’s 51st Independence Anniversary, declared that he has hard decision to improve governance to ensure greater transparency, probity, and accountability at all levels.

In a nationwide broadcast this morning, President Jonathan acknowledged that “a nation is sustained by its institutions and systemsh, saying that, “ I have taken strong measures to improve on governance. It is in this regard that I signed into law the Freedom of Information Action.

He announced that, “already, we are beginning to do things differently. I believe that integrity, honour, patriotism, selfless service and fear of God, must be the hallmarks of leadership at all levels.

Nigeria's President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan addresses the 66th UN General Assembly at the United Nations headquarters in New York, September 21, 2011. PHOTO

The President disclosed that his government has put in place a new and reinvigorated national security strategy, to combat the threat to safety, noting that, “ no matter what I do as your President and no matter what we do as your elected leaders, at all levels, the peace and security of our nation rest also on our collective efforts as citizens, in our various communities.

He therefore charged all leaders and citizens in every community to make peace the number one priority of their daily routine, because, without peace, no community can realize its objectives or achieve a happy and productive life for its members.

“The current incidents of violence and terror in parts of the country will surely be overcome. We will secure the safety of our citizens for only when we do this, will we be able to build the needed peace and tranquility in all parts of the federation. Securing our peace and stability will ensure economic growth and prosperity for all”, he said.

While assuring that his administration will spare no effort in fighting crime, building peace, and securing our homeland against internal threats and infiltration by violent groups, from outside our borders, Jonathan condemned all acts of violence and declared that such acts of mindless savagery shall not be allowed to define our country. We will not be deterred. Our resolve is strong.

Jonathan who vowed to further strengthen all institutions to ensure greater transparency, probity, and accountability at all levels, said he redeemed the promised to restore confidence in the electoral system and deliver free and fair elections, which he did through some electoral reforms and strengthened INEC and other related agencies.

According to him, “since I assumed office as the President of our great country, I have continued to focus my attention on the economy. I have taken several measures to address structural weaknesses which stand between us and economic growth and prosperity for all.

He explained that government was growing the economy to generate employment opportunities for our teeming youth and enhanced prosperity for every citizen, saying that, “in a few days’ time, I shall launch an innovative competition for our young entrepreneurs to come up with ways to expand their businesses, create more jobs, and sharpen their business skills.

While reassuring Nigerians of his resolve to lead the country into a safer, more peaceful, and prosperous future for our children, he said as a result of his electoral reforms, “Our April 2011 general elections were adjudged by Nigerians and the international community as the most transparent and credible elections, ever conducted in our country. Indeed, post-election petitions reduced by over 50 per cent.

The President solicited the support of all Nigerians in the task of nation building, saying that, “the time has come to rise above ethnic and religious divisions; The time has come to unite against violence in all its ramifications; The time has come to secure our peace and unite against suffering, and deprivation.”

Expressing optimism in the unity and indivisibility of the country, Jonathan stated that, “I see a new Nigeria rising. A Nigeria that is economically strong. A Nigeria that takes its rightful place of leadership in the world. A Nigeria that uses its diversity to reinforce its strength. A Nigeria we all can be proud of.

While praising the resilience and dedication of Nigerians in the pursuit of their socioeconomic activities, Jonathan believed that, “our potential is huge. We have the requisite market volume. We have a youthful, energetic, and hardworking population.

According to him, the structural and managerial bottlenecks that have obstructed our economic growth are being addressed to unleash the energy and potentials of this nation.

“To achieve this, I am determined to ensure that Nigerians have reliable electricity. Our economy will grow faster, and our hard working small businesses will thrive when we finally fix the power challenges we face. We are fast tracking power reforms to improve the generation and distribution of electricity.

To this end, he disclosed that, “we are effectively supporting the private-sector led construction of world scale petrochemical and fertilizer plants. This will for the first time in our history, result in effective monetisation of our abundant natural gas resources while at the same time, creating over a million jobs. Reminding Nigerians that there was a time they requested for the Nigerian nation, Jonathan said, “this is Nigeria we need and this is the Nigeria we all must build. As we celebrate today, let us resolve to build the Nigeria of our future.

Calling on all political leaders to put aside partisan politics for united action towards the advancement of our nation, the President said it is very clear that without fundamental reforms in the key sectors of our economy, Nigeria will not be able to fully unlock our potential as a nation, noting that, “we must manage our resources more prudently and efficiently. We must provide stable electricity to our citizens to help drive economic activity.

He explained that the government has put in place implementable programmes to transform the country from an importer of petroleum products to the regional hub for exportation of value-added petroleum and petrochemical products, saying that, “We are revamping existing refineries and building three new ones”.

“Because of the measures we have taken on the economy, our GDP is today is one of the fastest growing in Africa. We are currently growing the economy at 7.8%. We expect to sustain an 8% growth rate and a better GDP in the medium term, on our journey towards realizing our Vision 20:2020 goal”, he said.

On agriculture and food security, Jonathan said the future is very bright; and announced with delight that “this week, Nigeria released 8 new high yielding cocoa varieties. This will help to transform cocoa production, across the 14 cocoa producing states in the nation, and we must also take pride in our scientists.

“We plan to reach 20 million farmers with private-sector distributed fertilizers over the next four years. We will improve the investment environment and incentives for the private sector across the agricultural value chains. Our agricultural transf-ormation plan will generate 3.5 million jobs and an additional 20 million metric tons of food.

However, he encouraged Nigerians to patronise produce-in-Nigeria foods, saying, “we must all show pride in our farmers. We should eat what we produce. The increasing popularity of local products like Ofada Rice, Badegi rice, and Abakaliki Rice , attest to the fact that the populace will readily embrace locally grown produce.

He observed that, “growth in agriculture and other non-oil sectors is crucial to help diversify the economy and to generate much needed jobs. Agriculture remains one of the highest priorities in my government’s Agenda for National Transformation. We have set out clear agricultural transformation action plans and policy measures to achieve self-sufficiency in the production of rice, cassava, maize, sorghum and other staple foods.’

Jonathan revealed that, “self-sufficiency in rice alone will save us the N356b that we currently spend annually importing rice. We will revamp the way we distribute fertilizers, taking government out of distribution of fertilizers.’

The President said he was aware that a great number of people are joining hands with him and the Administration in the great task ahead.

“I value all Nigerians. I see our youth who are looking for jobs and yet remain hopeful. I see the farmer, and fisherman toiling everyday to earn a living. I see the teacher working hard to train our future generations with much sacrifice. I see the market women whose entrepreneurial spirit helps to generate income for their children and families. I see our sportsmen and women training hard to bring glory to our nation. I see our resilience and commitment as a nation to defend our democracy and secure our future.

“I see every single profession and vocation, making positive contributions to national progress. I value you all! Together, we shall work for a Nigeria in which democracy and the rule of law are sacrosanct. A country where corruption and its attendant vices are banished. A country where human life is sacred and respected and where the rights of the individual are protected.”

The journey to nationhood, he observed, always has its own challenges, and that Nigeria has had her own share. But that “our growing pains as a nation have included the Civil War, the June 12 election crisis and restlessness in the Niger Delta. But Nigeria has always overcome each of these challenges. We overcame before. We will overcome yet again.”

The increasing popularity of local products, like ‘Ofada Rice’, ‘Badegi rice’, and ‘Abakaliki Rice’, attest to the fact, that the populace will readily embrace locally grown produce”.

He observed that “growth in agriculture and other non-oil sectors are crucial, to help diversify the economy and to generate much needed jobs. Agriculture remains one of the highest priorities in my government’s Agenda for National Transformation. We have set out clear, agricultural, transformation action plans and policy measures, to achieve self-sufficiency in the production of rice, cassava, maize, sorghum and other staple foods”.

Jonathan revealed that “self-sufficiency in rice alone will save us the 356 Billion Naira that we currently spend annually importing rice. We will revamp the way we distribute fertilizers, taking government out of distribution of fertilizers”.

As Nigeria marks her 51st independence celebration, Jonathan said he was aware that a great number of people are joining hands with him and the Administration, in the great task ahead.

“I value all Nigerians. I see our youth who are looking for jobs and yet remain hopeful. I see the farmer, and fisherman, toiling everyday to earn a living. I see the teacher, working hard, to train our future generations, with much sacrifice. I see the market women whose entrepreneurial spirit helps to generate income for their children and families. I see our sportsmen and women training hard to bring glory to our nation. I see our resilience and commitment, as a nation, to defend our democracy and secure our future”.

He said “I see every single profession and vocation, making positive contributions to national progress. I value you all! Together, we shall work for a Nigeria in which democracy and the rule of law are sacrosanct. A country where corruption and its attendant vices, are banished. A country where human life is sacred and respected, and where the rights of the individual are protected.

The journey to nationhood, he observed, is always has its own challenges, and that Nigeria has had her own share;. But that “our growing pains as a nation have included the civil war, the June 12 election crisis and restlessness in the Niger Delta. But Nigeria has always overcome each of these challenges. We overcame before. We will overcome yet again”.