Sh100m 'green stadium' to be built in Nyamira County

Nyamira County is set to have a ‘green stadium,’ the first in the country.

The stadium will embrace green energy like use of solar and will be rolled out in other counties in what government officials say is a step forward in environment and energy conservation.

The state has allocated Sh100 million for the project that is expected to be completed by January 2022.

Top government officials toured Magwagwa Tuesday to assess the field where the stadium will be constructed to international standards.

Nyamira County Governor Amos Nyaribo and County Commissioner Amos Mariba led the top state delegation, which included ICT and Innovation Principal Secretary Jerome Ochieng, his sports counterpart Joe Okudo and Sports Kenya Chairman Fred Muteti.

Public works officers have already visited the site and made a report on the same. An agreement that has been authorised by the Office of the Attorney General on how the project will be implemented will be signed later this week.

Muteti said the model in Nyamira will be replicated in other counties. The stadium is a joint project between the national government, Sports Kenya and County government.

“This stadium will be of benefit to us all, not just sportsmen and women. We want the green stadium to calculate a healthy living habit in us all by exercising here often. The Nyamira International Stadium in Magwagwa will be our first green stadium in the country,” said the Sports Kenya chairman.

Sports stadiums around the world are turning green, adopting solar and wind technology to improve their cities and win over fans.

The Nyamira International stadium is one of the projects President Uhuru Kenyatta promised to complete in honour of the late governor John Nyagarama.

“This is among several projects that President Kenyatta promised. Others are improvements to county offices and some hospitals. We will ensure all these projects are complete,” said Mr Ochieng.

The completion of this project that was in late governor Nyagarama’s memorandum, will be an achievement to the county.

Last year during his tour of Nyamira, the late Nyagarama tried to read the memorandum to the President but was heckled by residents at Ikonge Market.

After Nyagarama’s death, President Kenyatta, through Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i, requested for the memorandum which contains the projects that the national government is doing now as part of the wishes of the late county boss.

Governor Nyaribo said the national government officials had confirmed that the construction of the stadium will begin in June, and by January next year, the contractor will have handed it over.

“There are people who have encroached here. You cannot fight with the government. This stadium is meant for sports. We wrote a letter to the Nyamira Land Registrar in February to revoke all the title deeds on the encroached land. This will be done before the end of this month. This land is public land,” said Mr Nyaribo.

The Governor also noted that locals will benefit from job opportunities emanating from the projects.

“Locals from here will be employed. We will only allow experts like engineers to be brought by the contractor. The rest of the opportunities are for locals,” said Mr Nyaribo.

Other projects that President Kenyatta has promised to complete include Nyamaiya stadium in Nyamaiya ward of West Mugirango constituency, which will be constructed to a standard stadia and Ekerenyo sub county hospital in Nyamira North, which will be advanced to a level five facility to improve it from its sub-county status, at Sh100 million.

The county headquarters, whose construction started in 2018, will also be completed at an approximated cost of Sh200 million.