The minister of youth and sports development, Mr Sunday Dare, has commended the United States Government for selecting journalist and gender advocate, Aderonke Bello, for the Global Sports Mentoring Programme, GSMP; the product of a partnership between the Department of State, espnW, and the University of Tennessee’s Center for Sport, Peace & Society.

Speaking during a courtesy visit to his office by Ms Bello, the Minister thanked the United States government for its gesture and charged the delegate to be a good representative of Nigeria and the entire sports community in the country.

“This is highly commendable and on behalf of the Nigerian Government, I want to thank the United States Government for the privilege given to Nigeria to participate in the programme, which will not only be beneficial to the delegate but the Nigerian women and girls.

“Congratulations to you, I wish you all the best in the States, please concentrate, make the best of the GSMP programme and be a good ambassador of our dear country,” he concluded.

The GSMP is an international leadership development programme that was launched in 2012 by the US Department of State. It consists of two pillars focusing on advancing gender equality – empowering women through sports programme, and disability rights. The programme is a five-week, immersive mentorship experience that focuses on empowering international delegates to serve their communities by increasing access to and opportunities for participation in sports.