A total of 1,000 students from Public and Private Tertiary institutions in Abia State are expected to participate in 26 Sporting events at the Maiden Tertiary Education Sports Fiesta organized by the Ministry of Tertiary Education in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and Youth Development.
The four day event, which would commence from 25 to 28 November 2025, will also feature the unveiling of the “New Abia Pioneers Club;
value-orientation platform to promote excellence, discipline and alternatives to cultism and drug abuse.
The Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Prof Uche Eme Uche, who disclosed this while briefing Journalists at a joint press conference in Umuahia, described the initiative as a landmark intervention by the present administration, aimed at revitalising extracurricular life in higher institutions.
Prof Uche said the the Sports festival is also designed to unite students from various Tertiary Institutions, groom new talents and entrench the New Abia mindset across campuses.
“We call it a Sports fiesta because it’s not going to be the traditional games competitions. This is going to be like a festival, a festival activity to celebrate sports and sports people and also trying to identify talents”, the Commissioner stated.
She noted that students from the Tertiary Institutions in the State often rely on NUGA Games, which are infrequent and usually held far from the state, leaving them with limited sporting engagement.
“We have secondary school sports, we have children’s sports, and what is happening at the tertiary level?”, she queried.
Prof. Uche thanked Governor Alex Otti for the swift approval of the Sports festival which she said underscores his administration’s passion for youth development and holistic education.
“This programme aims at an inclusive approach towards education. Inclusive because the barriers between maybe teacher, student, male, female will be erased on the ground of play”, she added.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Sir Nwaobilor Ananaba, disclosed that the fiesta will hold across three key venues in Umuahia.
According to him, Track and field events will take place at the Umuahia Township Stadium, football matches will be hosted at Ibeku High School, while lawn tennis games hold at the Ridge Club, Umuahia.
Sir Nwaobilor Ananaba, described the initiative as a strategic continuation of the State’s Youth-development programmes.
He recalled that the present administration launched the Secondary School Unity Games, with the introduction of the Tertiary Education Fiesta to complete the Youth talent-development pipeline from Secondary to Tertiary levels.
“A couple of years ago, we started the secondary school unity game, where we catch them young, provide a good structure to develop them and nurture them, and make them fantastic athletes to represent at the state at the state level, national level and international level.
“So, His Excellency has gone further for us to extend this youth empowerment to tertiary education. For us, not only to identify, nurture but also to further extend to identify stars that will replace our existing stars.
“Part of our mandate is to create structures to develop young people so, the tertiary education Fiesta in collaboration with the Ministry of the Tertiary is a fantastic way to leverage on what we have started”, he said.
Ananaba confirmed that the fiesta will feature 26 sports, making it one of the most extensive multi-sport events in the region.
“We also want to make sure that other sports, who are not popular, become popular. It’s a wider way to engage our athletes and promote sports. Sports is also business.
Sir Ananaba disclosed that the Ministry has submitted recommendations for additional infrastructure, including an Olympic-size swimming facility to enhance aquatic sports development.
He revealed that Governor Otti approved a total of ₦500,000 for each participating tertiary institution, covering athlete preparation, transportation and other logistics to guarantee their full participation.
