By Blessing Tanko
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in collaboration with CWAY Water and Alfa Designs Nigeria Ltd., on Saturday held its fifth quarterly fitness walk to promote staff wellness, team bonding and social cohesion.
The exercise, which featured walking, jogging, stretching, games and other physical activities, attracted the participation of NAN management and staff.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of NAN, Malam Ali M. Ali, said the initiative was designed to promote wellness, togetherness and social interaction among workers of the Agency.
Ali said the fitness walk, which began in 2024, had continued in spite of adjustments to its quarterly schedule.
He said the fifth edition demonstrated the success of the initiative in strengthening team spirit, promoting bonding and encouraging healthy lifestyles among staff.
The managing director said regular physical exercise was particularly important for media workers, who often spent long hours gathering, processing and disseminating news.
He said demanding work schedules and sedentary lifestyles could expose media workers to health challenges, including high blood pressure and diabetes.
According to him, NAN had provided a well-equipped gym at its headquarters and introduced a one-hour workload reduction twice weekly to enable staff to exercise regularly.
Ali said the arrangement was also aimed at encouraging workers to pay greater attention to their physical and mental wellbeing.
He said the Agency had extended the fitness initiative to its Lagos Directorate, where the exercise had been adopted as a monthly activity.
The managing director said the fitness-walk also provided an opportunity for staff and management to interact freely, with official positions temporarily set aside.
“Here, titles are all blunted. We are all one big family, working out together, building together and enjoying this conviviality and togetherness,” he said.
Also speaking, Somtochukwu Ifediegwu, a representative of Alfa Designs Nigeria Ltd., said the company was honoured to support NAN’s fitness initiative.
Ifediegwu described the company as an engineering, procurement, installation, commissioning and asset integrity management firm committed to promoting healthy living.
She said Alfa Designs had introduced its Genesis New Vision (GNV) application to help users monitor their health and fitness.
According to her, the application enables users to monitor daily steps, set fitness goals and calculate calories consumed or burned.
Ifediegwu commended NAN, the organisers and participants for the initiative and expressed the company’s readiness for further collaboration with the Agency.
Similarly, Olwaseun, Kumuyi, Regional Marketing Executive, CWAY Abuja Manufacturing, appreciated NAN for the opportunity to participate in the exercise.
Olwaseun said regular exercise, stretching and adequate water intake were essential for maintaining strength and promoting healthy living.
He said it was the second time CWAY was participating in the NAN fitness walk.
Kumuyi pledged the company’s continued support for the initiative, subject to the approval and backing of its management.
The exercise ended with participants engaging in walking, jogging, stretching and other physical activities aimed at promoting wellness, team spirit and stronger workplace relationships.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
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Edited by Emmanuel Afonne