We are building women champions through basketball, says Anyanwu

Chief Executive Officer, Sonai Global Services Limited, Nneamaka Anyanwu believes the SG Elite Basketball for underprivileged girls from ages 11 to 17 will build confident young women, who can realise their dreams in every sector of life.

Speaking with The Guardian on the two-day clinic organised for teenage girls at the Leisure Sports Park (LSP), Lekki, Lagos, Anyanwu said, “I am doing this because I believe in giving back.

I have always worked for NGOs and I decided it is time for me to start one, so I decided to start an initiative that focuses on empowering girls through sports, education and service.

This particular initiative is a Girls Basketball Champion series that empowers girls through basketball.

“I choose basketball because I believe in sports. I am a former basketball player; I used to play for Cornell University, New York.

I love the game, I love how it challenges you, pushes you and allow you to really be yourself on and off the court.”

The 27-year-old graduate of Interdisciplinary Studies revealed that the project has several components, including post clinic mentorship, where tutors will “continue to develop the girls because we believe in education, which is one of our core values.

“We will also to help the girls make healthy choices, provide them with health care insurance because each of the girls is a champion. We will continue to build outspoken, smart, resilient, hardworking and integrity women in the society.”

On the challenges, Anyanwu, who worked with former national team player and Assistant Coach, First Deepwater Basketball club, Mary Chinweokwu Erinfolami, said, “I was born and raised in the U.S. so for me, Nigeria is different.

I think Nigeria is a place where you don’t really know how to cope,you just have to find a way to keep going and adapt.
“I know that Nigeria has several unseen challenges, problems you don’t see coming, but you just have to figure out your way around it, and so, that’s how I’ve been operating.

“One of our goals is to build leagues where different areas like Lekki Island Girls versus Surulere Girls, Yaba girls will play championships and the girls get to a stage where they will be spotted by foreign basketball clubs, have the opportunity to play outside the country and also have the opportunity to play for the national team. We are building up champions… we are building future leaders so, for me, the sky is just the limit.”