For somebody whose profession has spanned media, arts and tradition, tourism and now sports activities, promoting Nigeria to the world has turn into second nature to the president of the Nigerian Golf Federation, Olusegun Runsewe. As Vanessa Obiohalearns in a latest encounter, placing the Nigerian model first is a private obligation.
Otunba Olusegun Runsewe had chosen a far nook desk of the semi-lit resort restaurant in Ikeja for our assembly. It was a sunny afternoon, however there was a slight chill within the air. His tall body was embraced by the armchair. Dressed in a beige caftan, paired with an identical cap, his poise exuded the boldness of 1 able to tackle any problem thrown at him.
It is an artwork he has mastered over greater than three a long time of serving in a single authorities capability or one other. Therefore, once I requested him about his work on the Nigerian Golf Federation (NGF), the place he serves as president, there was no hesitation in his response.
Golf is a sport he had been acquainted with since his days in Kaduna, the place he grew up, though he was not dedicated to it. Since assuming the management of the federation, nevertheless, he has been hands-on, injecting new concepts and reviving outdated tournaments such because the Nigeria Open Golf Tournament, scheduled for November 16-27, 2027. It would be the first time the event might be held in 20 years.
For Runsewe, the aim is extra than simply elevating the usual of golf in Nigeria to a global stage. It can be about advertising and marketing Nigeria via the game. Golf, he believes, has the potential to generate extra income for the federal government, however extra importantly, it’s a sport the place networking is significant.
“Golf is the biggest network in the world,” he shared. “If you travel anywhere in the world for a conference or a seminar, the moment someone in the team inquires if you play golf, and you respond in the affirmative, a family is built instantly.”
What makes it much more distinctive, he mentioned, is that not like different sports activities the place camaraderie and bonding are sometimes constructed amongst spectators, in golf, the gamers drive that relationship.
“We are just understanding now that golf is not just about the game but the network, relationship and content,” he added.
Just as he did in tourism, the place he promoted the slogan ‘tourism is life’, Runsewe is utilizing the identical template in golf, seeing it not simply as a sport however as a automobile to advertise the Nigerian model. He has additionally found that golfers are among the many most travelled individuals on this planet.
For somebody whose profession has spanned media, arts and tradition, tourism and now sports activities, promoting Nigeria to the world has turn into second nature to him. It is troublesome for him to talk about something with out placing the Nigerian model first.
That intuition was fashioned a lot earlier in his profession. Runsewe’s expertise on the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2003 stays one of many tales he remembers with specific fondness. The then President Olusegun Obasanjo needed to ship one or two officers to understudy CHOGM in nations that had beforehand hosted it. Several officers had been approached, however none was out there. Then the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Thelma Iremiren, instructed Runsewe.
“I was quite a young officer then, and Baba (Obasanjo) is someone who likes to be sure that one can deliver. But Mrs Iremiren insisted that I would deliver. I can tell you this: when God is with you, when your time has come, everything will fall into place.”
The younger officer discovered himself travelling to 5 nations.
“When they tell you that you are going with the envoy of the president, please don’t take it for granted. It’s a lifetime experience that I will never forget,” he mentioned, recalling these days nostalgically.
But the expertise didn’t finish there. When he returned, he was requested to go to London to characterize Nigeria. He was in his 30s then.
“I took a flight. I received to London. A employees member of the Nigerian embassy on the airport took me straight to the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, just for me to open the door and see near about 60 individuals everywhere in the world within the corridor. The subsequent factor I heard was, ‘The gentleman we are expecting has arrived.’
He panicked.
“I said, ‘What is this?’ I started reciting Psalm 23: The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. I started praying to God. ‘God, help me.’ So I sat down. There was nothing I could do again. I had to answer the questions.”
The moderator, a Canadian girl, saved asking him questions. Deploying his journalistic expertise, Runsewe rose to the duty. When she requested if Nigeria may present 10 cubicles of web fibre, the younger Runsewe, rising in confidence, responded that Nigeria had 20, despite the fact that he had no concept if the nation had that or not.
He returned to Nigeria that day and instantly reported to his principal that he had dedicated Nigeria to what he referred to as a constructive problem. He instantly received presidential approval to go to South Africa to discover a firm that might ship what he had promised.
It was the identical with the OB vans. He contacted Peter Igho, then Executive Director of Programmes on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), and he supplied the required vans.
By the time the Commonwealth Secretariat got here to Nigeria for inspection, the whole lot was in place.
“That was my turning point,” he mentioned.
It was after that occasion that he was appointed to the tourism sector.
Runsewe has arguably spent a lot of his profession promoting Nigerian tourism to the world. This was significantly evident throughout his time as Director-General of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) – then NTDA. With a grasp’s diploma in Marketing, Runsewe adopted the SWOT method when advertising and marketing Nigeria, though his specific methodology was something however standard. The first place he visits every time he arrives in a brand new nation is the jail.
“I go to the prison to check the strength of Nigeria, to check the opportunities and the threats. If you don’t get that right, you may be selling the right product to the wrong people.”
His findings had been usually revealing. Most of the individuals in prisons had been usually believed to be Nigerian, however this turned out to not be the case. More revealing was his declare that 80 per cent of foreigners believed each black man was from Nigeria. All of this, he mentioned, occurred at a time when Nigerian passports had been very porous.
Beyond correcting perceptions of Nigeria outdoors its shores, Runsewe left his mark on the tourism sector. Just check out the Nigerian passport and the cultural icons printed on it. He initiated them.
During the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Runsewe wrote to then President Goodluck Jonathan, asking to construct a village the place Nigerians may watch the event. He noticed it as a chance to advertise and rejoice the nation.
His request was accepted, and the primary Nigerian Village was constructed, drawing lots of of individuals in an environment of celebration and conviviality. Entertainers had been additionally readily available to maintain the ambiance full of life throughout half-time.
“We were actually voted the best village in that World Cup,” he recalled.
He replicated that on the World Cup in Russia in 2018.
But for Runsewe, selling Nigeria is just not solely about tourism sights. It can be about how Nigerians see themselves.
“It’s unfortunate that most of us don’t know much about our country,” he mentioned.
For that to alter, he instructed a significant public enlightenment marketing campaign.
“We need to understand that our country is important and our identity is not our tribe or religion but the country. We must see it as honour,” he mentioned.
He additionally talked concerning the lack of continuity in governance, citing examples from his tenure within the tourism sector, the place he prioritised employees welfare by offering sure services at subsidised charges. In his view, the welfare of the individuals should all the time be paramount, as that will even deliver out the perfect in them
Runsewe additionally proposed the institution of reorientation camps in each native authorities to show younger individuals about Nigerian tradition, which, in keeping with him, they’ve turn into disconnected from. He instructed that retired academics needs to be deployed for the duty as a result of they possess the instructing expertise wanted to achieve the grassroots.
“Before, if you are invited to come and play any sport, football or tennis for Nigeria, we feel very excited, so happy. These days, they bargain for how much you are going to pay them. We need to enlighten our people on the importance of respecting and believing in our culture.”
Like tourism, Runsewe additionally contributed to the humanities and crafts sector, serving as Director-General of the National Council for Arts and Culture. He is at present President of the World Craft Council, which earlier this 12 months honoured him with the Icon of Crafts, Culture and Hospitality in Africa Award.
Even his look displays the sector that has formed a lot of his profession. He is usually seen in kaftans with matching caps, a method that has turn into a part of his id.
Now, in golf, he seems to be making use of the identical beliefs that guided him in tourism: discover a platform, construct a community and use it to advertise Nigeria.
There continues to be a lot he needs to realize. But for somebody who has spent most of his life occupying one place or one other, Runsewe is aware of there’ll finally be a time to decelerate.
While he stays tight-lipped about his retirement plans, he’s aware of the truth that “the moment I come to a certain age, I will take a break.”
He, nevertheless, stays satisfied concerning the Nigerian challenge.
“There is still hope for us,” he mentioned convincingly, as if he had seen the way forward for Nigeria in a crystal ball. “No country in the world would wake up one day and get everything right. Because if they do, then where is the place for history or to tell a story?”
