The National Government has made some adjustments in the ongoing construction of Bukhungu Stadium to be at par with the International Football Federation (FIFA) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Standards.
The Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba said the redesign and remodeling will position the stadium as a venue to host international football matches.
“We made some adjustments to make sure we conform to the FIFA and CAF requirements so I can now say that we are now moving with the FIFA, CAF checklist,” he noted.
The CS disclosed that the National government has committed Sh. 760million to support the Kakamega County government to complete construction of the Stadium by the end of next year.
“We really must finish this project within the coming financial year because the funds we have committed for this project falls in the current financial year 2023/2024, we are going to cascade those resources into the next financial year we don’t want to carry those funds to another financial year,” he added.
The County Government had projected to spend Sh 3.2billion to complete the stadium with CS Namwamba saying that through the National Government’s intervention, the county government is likely to save on the total cost.
“The county government had made a projection of Sh 3.2billion to complete this project at their own level based on the initial design, but we have made some suggestions on certain changes, which will have a cost implication, there will be a variation that will most likely lower the cost of this project, he explained.
Part of the redesigns proposed by the National government include putting up a teflon canopy on the second level of the layers.
He said the National government is keen on completing the stadium as it plays a key role in developing talents noting that the delays have been caused by the heavy rains.
“Bukhungu is a shrine of football and this is a cathedral of sports, a famous Arena. History records that the first ever competitive football game involving a Kenyan team happened at the Bukhungu Stadium between a local team and a visiting English team. From that time, it has been a very special arena for sports and for football,” Namwamba noted.
By Moses Wekesa
