For someone whose career has spanned media, arts and culture, tourism and now sports, selling Nigeria to the world has become second nature to the president of the Nigerian Golf Federation, Olusegun Runsewe. As Vanessa Obiohalearns in a recent encounter, putting the Nigerian brand first is a personal obligation.
Otunba Olusegun Runsewe had chosen a far corner table of the semi-lit hotel restaurant in Ikeja for our meeting. It was a sunny afternoon, but there was a slight chill in the air. His tall frame was embraced by the armchair. Dressed in a beige caftan, paired with a matching cap, his poise exuded the confidence of one ready to take on any challenge thrown at him.
It is an art he has mastered over more than three decades of serving in one government capacity or another. Therefore, when I asked him about his work at the Nigerian Golf Federation (NGF), where he serves as president, there was no hesitation in his response.
Golf is a sport he had been familiar with since his days in Kaduna, where he grew up, although he was not committed to it. Since assuming the leadership of the federation, however, he has been hands-on, injecting new ideas and reviving old tournaments such as the Nigeria Open Golf Tournament, scheduled for November 16-27, 2027. It will be the first time the tournament will be held in two decades.
For Runsewe, the goal is more than just raising the standard of golf in Nigeria to an international level. It is also about marketing Nigeria through the sport. Golf, he believes, has the potential to generate more revenue for the government, but more importantly, it is a sport where networking is vital.
“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 even more unique, he said, is that unlike other sports where camaraderie and bonding are often built among spectators, in golf, the players 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, where he promoted the slogan ‘tourism is life’, Runsewe is using the same template in golf, seeing it not just as a sport but as a vehicle to promote the Nigerian brand. He has also discovered that golfers are among the most travelled people in the world.
For someone whose career has spanned media, arts and culture, tourism and now sports, selling Nigeria to the world has become second nature to him. It is difficult for him to speak about anything without putting the Nigerian brand first.
That instinct was formed much earlier in his career. Runsewe’s experience at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2003 remains one of the stories he recalls with particular fondness. The then President Olusegun Obasanjo wanted to send one or two officials to understudy CHOGM in countries that had previously hosted it. Several officials were approached, but none was available. Then the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Thelma Iremiren, suggested 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 young officer found himself travelling to five countries.
“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 said, recalling those days nostalgically.
But the experience did not end there. When he returned, he was asked to go to London to represent Nigeria. He was in his 30s then.
“I took a flight. I got to London. A staff member of the Nigerian embassy at the airport took me straight to the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, only for me to open the door and see close to about 60 people all over the world in the hall. The next thing 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 woman, kept asking him questions. Deploying his journalistic skills, Runsewe rose to the task. When she asked if Nigeria could provide 10 cubicles of internet fibre, the young Runsewe, growing in confidence, responded that Nigeria had 20, even though he had no idea if the country had that or not.
He returned to Nigeria that day and immediately reported to his principal that he had committed Nigeria to what he called a positive challenge. He immediately got presidential approval to go to South Africa to find a company that could deliver what he had promised.
It was the same with the OB vans. He contacted Peter Igho, then Executive Director of Programmes at the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), and he provided the necessary vans.
By the time the Commonwealth Secretariat came to Nigeria for inspection, everything was in place.
“That was my turning point,” he said.
It was after that event that he was appointed to the tourism sector.
Runsewe has arguably spent much of his career selling Nigerian tourism to the world. This was particularly evident during his time as Director-General of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) – then NTDA. With a master’s degree in Marketing, Runsewe adopted the SWOT approach when marketing Nigeria, although his particular method was anything but conventional. The first place he visits whenever he arrives in a new country is the prison.
“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 were often revealing. Most of the people in prisons were often believed to be Nigerian, but this turned out not to be the case. More revealing was his claim that 80 per cent of foreigners believed every black man was from Nigeria. All of this, he said, happened at a time when Nigerian passports were very porous.
Beyond correcting perceptions of Nigeria outside its shores, Runsewe left his mark on the tourism sector. Just take a look at 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 build a village where Nigerians could watch the tournament. He saw it as an opportunity to promote and celebrate the country.
His request was approved, and the first Nigerian Village was built, drawing hundreds of people in an atmosphere of celebration and conviviality. Entertainers were also on hand to keep the atmosphere lively during half-time.
“We were actually voted the best village in that World Cup,” he recalled.
He replicated that at the World Cup in Russia in 2018.
But for Runsewe, promoting Nigeria is not only about tourism attractions. It is also about how Nigerians see themselves.
“It’s unfortunate that most of us don’t know much about our country,” he said.
For that to change, he suggested a major public enlightenment 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 said.
He also talked about the lack of continuity in governance, citing examples from his tenure in the tourism sector, where he prioritised staff welfare by providing certain facilities at subsidised rates. In his view, the welfare of the people must always be paramount, as that will also bring out the best in them
Runsewe also proposed the establishment of reorientation camps in every local government to teach young people about Nigerian culture, which, according to him, they have become disconnected from. He suggested that retired teachers should be deployed for the task because they possess the teaching skills needed to reach 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 also contributed to the arts and crafts sector, serving as Director-General of the National Council for Arts and Culture. He is currently President of the World Craft Council, which earlier this year honoured him with the Icon of Crafts, Culture and Hospitality in Africa Award.
Even his appearance reflects the sector that has shaped much of his career. He is mostly seen in kaftans with matching caps, a style that has become part of his identity.
Now, in golf, he appears to be applying the same ideals that guided him in tourism: find a platform, build a network and use it to promote Nigeria.
There is still much he wants to achieve. But for someone who has spent most of his life occupying one position or another, Runsewe knows there will eventually be a time to slow down.
While he remains tight-lipped about his retirement plans, he is conscious of the fact that “the moment I come to a certain age, I will take a break.”
He, however, remains convinced about the Nigerian project.
“There is still hope for us,” he said convincingly, as if he had seen the future of 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?”