Ambitious Sh500m makeover: Nakuru County to invest heavily on sports infrastructure development

rich history

Former national volleyball setter, the late Mary Ayuma, who played for Kenya Post  and Telecommunication Corporation and national volleyball head coach David Lung’aho are also from the county.

The list is long starting from athletes, basketballers, netballers and the history is richer and only rivals Nairobi County.

All these players made a name in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s and over the years, sporting standards in the county have gone down due to factors ranging from economic constraints, dilapidated infrastructure and mismanagement.

Nakuru Town has been one of the county’s sporting centres with Afraha Stadium being the main venue of all types of ballgames and Madison Square Garden hosting  boxing championships.

Ballgames have also been extended to schools’ playgrounds while indoor games have always been hosted in private auditoriums.

This explains why Nakuru County Government should  construct sports facilities that can accommodate all sorts of games.

Last year, Nakuru County Government spent close to Sh20 million to refurbish Afraha Stadium before it was approved by Football Kenya Federation to host Council for East and Central Africa (Cecafa) Senior Challenge Cup in November.

Following the renovations, the stadium is now in better shape but more still needs to be done for the stadium to measure up to the required international standards.

build more stadia

The county’s Minister for Roads and Public Works, Joel Maina Kairu, told FeverPitch: “We have just started our plans to develop sporting infrastructure in this vast county but we had to start with Afraha Stadium before we embark on the rest.”

Nakuru Town East Member of Parliament who is also Football Kenya Federation Central Rift branch chairman David Gikaria said Afraha Stadium would be built to the status of Nairobi’s Nyayo National Stadium and Safaricom Kasarani Stadium.

“We are ready to invest more than Sh500 million towards this project and make sure it befits the international status,” said Gikaria.

Nakuru County Governor Kinuthia Mbugua said he is determined to build more stadia in a county that has 11 constituencies and his main focus wiil be on Naivasha, Molo and Gilgil towns once he is through with Afraha Stadium.

Already the county government has identified land where they want to put up a stadium in Naivasha town and thereafter refurbish the ones in Molo and Gilgil.

“These three stadiums (Naivasha, Molo and Gilgil) must be completed in good time to tap talent among the youth,” said the governor.

The county government has identified land measuring 20 acres at Delamere Farm in Naivasha to develop a multi-million sports complex but the work has not started.

In the past, the Kenyan Premier League matches involving Karuturi Sports and Oserian FC and Natiowide Division One League matches in the town have been played in private sports facilities at Oserian Stadium and Old Trafford Stadium in Naivasha.

However, the county government has never had any meaningful legislative agenda that could spur interests in developing this sector owing to perennial wrangles between Members of County Assembly and Office of the Governor.

The Minister for Education, Children, Culture and Social Services Prof Margaret Kitetu, who is hardly a month in office, was not willing to release funds allocated for sports infrastructural development since she is still not well versed with the problems affecting her ministry.

However, the Department of Education in that ministry has been given an allocation of Sh1 billion for the 2013/2014 financial year.