2019 ANNUAL REPORT

MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

What an amazing year it has been! It's quite incredible how much we have achieved at LSD Initiative over the past 12 months. Having come this far, I must admit that I am very humbled and honored to have spearheaded the activities of this noble organization from the very beginning.

As you review this annual report, you’ll see that in this last year we have accomplished a number of key initiatives proposed by the Advisory Board or initiated by our members. Concurrently, we have been spending a great deal of time working on the future of loofball, to ensure that it will be there to serve all youth and our members well in the long term.

Now more than ever, our work providing sporting opportunities to youth including the vulnerable children, the girl child and the deprived is inclusive and essential. And you can make a difference by helping us do this vital work. Your donation helps us continue to be present in the lives of children and young people from diverse backgrounds. It helps children and young people gain lifelong skills and enjoy the benefits of sport they rightfully deserve. It also helps us provide them with safe and conducive playing environment. Additionally, your donation helps us give life to opportunities that never were available.

To live in the world we want, we need to create the world we want. Our commitment to creating a better world through sport remains unwavering even in the face of challenges. We firmly believe that the power of our organization comes not from what we call ourselves, but from the passionate people who live and breathe our shared mission and values every day.

Thanks to our incredible volunteers, supporters, advisors and staff, for your continued support and love. We look forward to many more years of playing, learning, growing and shaping lives, together.

With gratitude,

Winner Vidiyeno Matahula
Executive Director

2019 HIGHLIGHTS

All year long, more than 2,000 children and young people participated in our school and non-school programs comprising weekly sport, outreaches, holiday camps, seminars and PE sessions. We achieved exciting milestones including incorporating our organization, establishing ties with the Federal Ministries of Education and Youth and Sports, getting approval from the Universal Basic Education Board to formally introduce loofball in schools within FCT, networking with sports organizations, local and int’l NGOs, businesses, sport loving individuals and so much more!

PROGRAMS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

With the support of our partners, advisors and other stakeholders, we were able to achieve significant successes. Below are key highlights of the year.

Weekly Sport

Weekly sport is one of the pillars of our activities. It offers players an opportunity to maintain fitness, learn and develop sporting skills. This year's weekly sport was fun and eventful. It saw a significant rise in number of participants as young people love to play something new. Regular matches and coaching sessions were conducted by volunteer coaches in our playing centers. New players were able to learn basic loofball skills and improve their performances.

Holiday Camps

This is one of the programs we run outside the school environment. It is organized to improve the minds of young people towards creative thinking and team work, as well as encouraging them to take up sport. In the last year, we were able to engage about 400 youth in holiday camps organized in parts of FCT and Adamawa State. The camps were characterized by displays of great talents and skills by children and young people from diverse backgrounds.

Street Loofball

Street Loofball was newly incorporated into our programs as a measure to take loofball to the streets, thereby providing solution to youth restiveness, crime and avoidable health problems. During our outings, participants of youthful ages were advised to shun every form of violence and crime. They were also encouraged to embrace sport as a way of keeping fit and learning important life skills.

Outreaches

Special outreaches were organized in various strategic locations in FCT and Nasarawa State. More than 100 kids were engaged in sport and other physical activities. The girl child and the deprived were not left out! Participants were also taught health benefits of sport and how to lead active and healthy lifestyle. We are working towards including the physically challenged in our future outreaches.

New Balls in Stores

Over the years since the inception of loofball, our team has been working tirelessly to ensure a ball is produced for every home, school, work place, and park. Our aim is to make loofball one of the wonders in the world of sport in recent times. Designed with the finest fur-like fabric with an inflatable to give it a spherical shape easy to grab, catch and throw. The new balls were launched in October with a match to commemorate the coming of a new age in the world of non-contact sports. Loofballs are now sold in local stores in FCT and satellite towns. Grab yours and get ‘loofy’!

Corporate Relations

We were able to establish ties with a host of corporate entities, most notable among which are the Federal Ministries of Education and Youth and Sports, and the Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB). Others Include the Sport Writers Association of Nigeria, FCT Secondary Education Board, the Beyond Sport Foundation, other int’l NGOs and many more. We also succeeded in partnering with and engaging local businesses and individuals in the supply of sporting materials as well as the production and distribution of loofballs and other game equipment.

Incorporation

In the early part of 2019, various meetings were held by the leadership team regarding incorporating the organization. Committees were constituted to draft constitution, raise funds and develop a system on how administer the sport of loofball. The organization became officially incorporated on March 19. Following this achievement, the organization went further to register with the Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering, and also open a corporate bank account.

Online Presence

Indeed one of our major successes this year! LSD Initiative now operates a fully functional website, accessible at www.lsd-initiative.org. The organization also maintains the official website of loofball i.e. www.loofball.com.ng. Our YouTube channel and social media handles (on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest) are also fully active. We are already exploring other opportunities in order to increase our online presence, thereby expanding our reach.

Other notable achievements of the year include networking and creating awareness in schools through seminars and PE sessions, where participants were taught basic loofball skills and health benefits of sport and physical activity.

FINANCIALS

Overview of Balance Sheet

Asset Distribution

Revenue

Analysis of Expenditure

Note: Our Comprehensive Financial Statement for fiscal 2019 is available on request.

THE ISSUES

Funding

A priority need for LSD Initiative is funding for field development, equipment supplies, logistics, full-time/part-time program staff and other operating costs. In the past, we have relied on our voluntary efforts, one-time volunteers or minimally compensated persons to run sporting events. This has resulted in continued difficulty attracting qualified personnel, and limited continuity for the participants whose success depends on positive role models and the continuous relationships they build with their instructors and trainers. In view of this, we have developed a fundraising scheme and systems to help secure funding from prospective donors, partners/sponsors and other alternative sources.

Awareness and Understanding of Sport’s Value

As a youth-oriented sports organization, it is imperative for us to redouble our efforts in creating awareness and sensitizing the public on the health and social benefits of sport, especially to young people. Parents and teachers need to understand that sport is a fundamental social right for every child and a factor in social integration and development, and that it reduces or prevents harmful health problems. We’ve made some progress in this area but there is still much work to be done.

Facilities

Facilities are also a key concern. Providing playing courts and game equipment in schools and local communities is very primary. These are investments that must be made in order to continually attract and engage participants in our events and programs, as well as attracting potential partners and sponsors.

Volunteer Support

With many of our activities volunteer led, there is also need for us to attract and retain volunteers. This is achievable by periodically training and providing volunteers with motivation, skills and adequate support in order to achieve excellence and project sustainability. Organizing capacity building programs for these volunteers will provide them with opportunities in areas such as leadership, problem solving and decision making, thereby increasing their chances of continuous work with LSD Initiative.

Government Support

One of the objectives of the National Sports Policy is to encourage mass participation in sports and recreation. Supporting grassroots sports initiatives by government is sacrosanct in any sporting nation, as sport helps to keep people healthy and positively engaged. In this regard, it is imperative that the Nigerian goververnment support initiatives of this nature so as to make it easier for more youth to play sport and develop their talent. We are working towards liaising with both the government and the private sector to invest in facilities, schemes and programs that will impact positively on the youth.

A Look Into The Future

Given our recent successes, one thing is crystal clear; we're evolving into a vibrant youth-oriented organization. The recent approval received to introduce loofball in schools only validates this assertion. We're working towards providing weekly sport and special programs in both primary and secondary schools in FCT and other states. Our primary focus is to continue enhancing the sport of loofball through research and development, ensuring that people of all ages participate in the sport and develop their potentials to the betterment of themselves and the society at large. LSD Initiative will continue to grow, leveraging on technology and economies of scale in order to drive down her operating costs. We’re maintaining steady growth in all aspects of our operations with a view to strengthening our impact/value proposition to partners, investors and sponsors in Nigeria and beyond.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We sincerely appreciate the following people who have graciously given their time and Support to LSD Initiative.

Advisory Board

Chief Prof. Wonotanzokan Tagowa
Prof. Stephen S. Hamafyelto
Barr. Joshua Onoja

Leadership Team

Winner Vidiyeno Matahula
Imoh Essien Bob
Mark Nathan
Raymond Clifford
Adeshola Abioye
Medinatu A. Muhammed
Olusayo Salako
Edet Okon Uye

Coaching Team

Salihu Omeiza
Babagana Ayuba
Luka Peter
Garba Musa
Sanusi Umar
Yohanna Philip
Victor Simon
Solomon James

Special Thanks To

Mrs Gloria M. Tagowa
Mr. Daniel Manarwa Kuzkhuza
Prof. Jeffery Barminas
Mr. Jude Okpaya
Barr. Onyekwuluje Obiageli
Mal. Ibrahim Yakubu
Mr. Clement Iyaluegbeghe
Mr. Soni Daniel
Mr. S.M. Bello
Mr. John Danjuma
Pst. Steve Amodu
Dr. O. Funsho
Mr. Sambo Waziri
Mr. Oluwatosin Shittu
Mr. Solomon Nwobodo
Mr. Habila Ibrahim
Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports
Federal Ministry of Education
FCT UBE Board
FCT Secondary Education Board
Sport Writers Association of Nigeria
National Research Institute of Chemical Technology
Mbako & Co. Investment Ltd.
Beyond Sport Foundation

Thanks to all those who have gotten us this far, and to those who will join us in our future endeavors. It takes a team!

Greater Thanks

annual report 2019