Burundi on right road after tapping into Kenya’s rallying expertise

Hellen Kagendo Shiri and her rallying machine.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • An ARC rally in Burundi will complete the East Africa Community regional integration in motorsport supported by regional corporates.
  • The Kenya and Burundi national championships are sponsored by the KCB Bank of Kenya that boasts a regional presence.

Last weekend marked yet another milestone for Kenyan rally officials.

Safari Rally Event Secretary Hellen Shiri and Chief Scrutineer Musa Locho were in Burundi to assist in the KCB Gitega Rally, a local championship event with an important long term goal.

Shiri, a member of the International Motorsport Federation (FIA) Women in Motorsport Commission, and FIA World's Event Secretary of The Year 2018 award winner, served as Deputy Clerk of Course (Dcoc) in Burundi, while Locho was the deputy in his area of specialisation.

Safari Rally Dcoc George Mwangi recently served as a FIA delegate in the Tanzania round of the Africa Rally Championship.

Other Kenyans who have been serving in similar capacities in continental events include Locho, Gurvir Babhra, Norris Ongali, and Nazir Yakub.

Veteran co-driver and former Africa motorsport boss Surinder Thatthi is always called up to officiate in FIA World Championship events at the highest level.

The off shot of this development is training programmes organised by the Safari Rally and the FIA commercial rights holder, the WRC Promoter, who identified five top experts from Europe in 2018 to train locals as a prerequisite of Kenya bidding for the return of the Safari to the FIA World Rally Championship by 2020.

The experts worked side by side with Kenyans, many of them well acquainted on rally officiating.

Finally, some are now considered equals amongst equals at the FIA level as the Safari continues to evolve as a made in Kenya, by Kenyans brand.

And, as this continues, some of the Kenyan officials are actually being called up to train their peers in the region. Burundi now wants to host a round of the Africa Rally Championship from next year.

This is the reason why Shiri and Locho were in Burundi which has applied to replace South Africa in the ARC.

South Africa dealt the championship a blow after it pulled out of the ARC without notice in a series still struggling to break new frontiers away from eastern and southern Africa region.

Various reasons have been advanced as to why South Africa shipped out, but it is also understood that the country is keener on its bid to join the F1 next year.

Burundi has turned to Kenya for assistance to organise an ARC Candidate Event in November looking to benefit from Kenya's time -tested organisational acumen.

CAB dispatched ACB Clerk of Course Adon Adoni in Nairobi recently for technical assistance on how to organise a successful Candidate Event early this month.

I need not add that Kenya successfully hosted the 2019 ARC as and FIA Candidate Event which birthed the 2020 WRC Safari.

Adoni says they are looking up to Kenya as a big brother, noting that rallying is a mass followed event which organisers are forced to keep route location secret to avoid expectedly high number of fans back in Burundi.

An ARC rally in Burundi will complete the East Africa Community regional integration in motorsport supported by regional corporates.

The Kenya and Burundi national championships are sponsored by the KCB Bank of Kenya that boasts a regional presence.