Talanta City Sports Stadium will cost Sh44.7bn to build

It has finally emerged that construction of the 60,000-seater Talanta Sports City Stadium in Nairobi will cost $344.5 million (Sh44.7 billion).

This was revealed in a document presented yesterday before the National Assembly’s Committee on Sports and Culture by the Ministry of Defence led by Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya yesterday.

Despite 37 per cent of work done , the government had only paid five per cent of the total construction cost.

A similar trend was observed t all other stadium projects where it emerged that the amount paid so far were significantly lower than the value of work already done.

The construction of the Talanta Sports City Stadium began on March 1 last year and is expected to be complete in February next year.

MPs raised concerns over the payment schedule for the various sports infrastructure projects undertaken jointly by the Ministries of Sports and Defence.

Kenya in undertaking a major sports infrastructural development for the delayed 2024 African Nations Championship (Chan) and the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) that the country will co-host with Uganda and Tanzania.

The Chan tournament has been scheduled for August 2 to 30.

Apart from Talanta Sports City Stadium, the other facilities undergoing refurbishment to international standards are Nyayo National Stadium, Moi International Sports Centre (MISC) Kasarani, Kenya Academy of Sports, Police Sacco Stadium, Ulinzi Sports Complex, Kipchoge Keino Stadium in Eldoret and the Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu.

President William Ruto tasked the Ministry of Defence to supervise these projects.

South Suba MP Caroli Omondi questioned who would bear the cost of the contractor pre-financing the projects, saying that using their own funds or bank loans comes at a price. He cited Lake Basin Development Authority, saying it entered a similar arrangement with a contractor to put up a mall but the contractor ended up claiming an amount exceeding the actual value of the project.

Webuye West MP Dan Wanyama, who is the chairman of the Committee on Sports and Culture, asked the Ministry of Defence to come clean on the matter. In his response, Patrick Mariru, the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Defence said it took a lot of convincing for the contractors to agree to continue with the works despite not having received funding from the government.

While promising that the cost of the contracts will not increase, he said the Ministry of Sports is working on securing funds to finance the projects.

“We have gotten the cost of these projects and we are going to stick to them,” said Mariru.

“These projects will be under audit even after we are done. But as a committee, you raise a critical question of these contractors that they need to be facilitated and the government in the name of Ministries of Sports and Defence is working on securing resources so that these projects are done.”

Tuya said: “The question that has kept coming from members is that what is the magic because of the disparity between work done and payment made. It is the securitization of the Sports Fund and once that process is complete, which is a process between the Ministry of Sports and the National Treasury, then we will have a flow of money to facilitate the contractors to complete the work.”

Police Sacco Stadium is the facility where the government had paid the contractor the highest amount so far at 20 per cent.

While the refurbishment of Nyayo is 70 per cent complete, only 19 per cent of payment has been made, said Titus Sokobe.