Sunday Akin Dare

Sunday Akin Dare (born 29 May 1966) is a Nigerian journalist who served as the Nigerian Minister of Youth & Sports from 2019 to 2023. He previously held the position of Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), having been appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari in August 2016.

Education
Dare attended Baptist High School in Jos, Nigeria, from 1978 to 1983 for his secondary education. He later pursued Advanced level studies at Oyo State College of Arts and Science, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. He earned a Bachelor of Science (BSc.) honors degree in International studies from Ahmadu Bello University in 1991. He later completed a Master of Arts (MA) in Law and Diplomacy at the University of Jos, Nigeria, in 1996.

In 1998, Dare was chosen as a Freedom Forum Fellow and Visiting Scholar at the School of Journalism at New York University (NYU). He also pursued Media and Public Policy studies (2000-2001) as a Nieman Journalism Fellow at Harvard University.

In 2011, he was awarded the Reuters Foundation Journalism Research Fellowship at the University of Oxford, where his research focused on "New Media and Citizen Journalism in Africa – A Case Study: Using New Media Tools and Citizen Journalism to Investigate Corruption in Nigeria."

Career
Dare began his journalism career by working as a correspondent for The Nation magazine in New York and as a production editor for the European-backed Fourth Estate magazine during Nigeria's military interregnum. He was also part of the founding team of Nigerian weekly magazines The News and Tempo.

Between 2001 and 2009, Dare served as Chief of the Hausa Service, African Division at Voice of America (VOA) in Washington, DC, where he managed various portfolios including the daily production of radio and online broadcast programs. He also led a team of international journalists based in Washington, DC, and correspondents in West Africa for Voice of America.

In 2009, Dare was appointed Senior Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister of Information and Communications. In this role, he managed media-related decisions, public information dissemination, and media policies under the Ministry's jurisdiction. He was instrumental in the sale of the 2.3 GHz spectrum frequency in 2014.

Dare founded the Social Media Clinic (SMC), a Media/Information Technology program aimed at educating citizens about IT development and new media usage for building a responsive society. He also served as the Chief of Staff / Special Adviser on media to former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

In 2016, Dare became the Executive Commissioner for Stakeholder Management at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), where he managed the NCC's interactions with public and private sector stakeholders.

Controversies
Sunday Dare denied the Nigeria women's national basketball team the opportunity to participate in the 2022 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup. He initiated a self-imposed ban on Nigeria's international competition involvement shortly before the scheduled start of the World Cup. This decision drew criticism and disappointment from players such as Ezinne Kalu and Upe Atosu. Kalu expressed her reluctance to represent Nigeria again, while Atosu described the situation as "heart-wrenching".

The controversy escalated when, following FIBA's decision to replace Nigeria with Mali at the World Cup, Sunday Dare lifted the self-imposed ban, citing the "overriding spirit of national interest". This reversal of the ban came after Nigeria had been replaced in the tournament, further intensifying the disappointment among Nigerian female players. The sudden change effectively dashed their dreams and invalidated their hard-fought qualification for the World Cup.

Honors and recognition
Dare was recognized as one of the fifty Leading Nigerians during Nigeria's Golden Jubilee anniversary celebration in North America. He also received the Voice of America Meritorious Honor Award 2009 for his leadership and professional contributions in Africa and the diaspora. Additionally, Dare was listed as a member of the International Committee to Protect Journalists Citation in 2000 in New York City.