World Bank in ambitious Sh4 billion plan to refurbish Afraha Stadium

A worker pushing a roller at the football pitch at Afraha Stadium in Nakuru on April 21, 2020. The stadium is under the county government. PHOTO | FRANCIS MUREITHI | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Unlike other modern stadiums in Kenya, Afraha Stadium will be a step ahead of the pack by becoming the first stadium in Kenya to have a sports heroes and heroines gallery
  • According to county planners, the eagerly awaited gallery will have photos and artistic work of past great sportsmen and women from Nakuru such as legendary boxer Philip Waruinge
  • The project whose first phase will cost more than Sh500 million will give the popular facility a new look that will see it rise to the league of the Nyayo National Stadium and Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani


After 60 years of carrying a colonial design, Nakuru’s Afraha Stadium will begin the journey to international standards in the next three months.

But unlike other modern stadiums in Kenya, Afraha Stadium will be a step ahead of the pack by becoming the first stadium in Kenya to have a sports heroes and heroines gallery.

According to county planners, the eagerly awaited gallery will have photos and artistic work of past great sportsmen and women from Nakuru such as legendary boxer Philip Waruinge.

People seated at the Afraha Stadium in Nakuru where they followed proceedings of the Nairobi requiem mass of the retired President Daniel Moi on big screen on February 11, 2020. PHOTO | JOSEPH OPENDA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

Waruinge wrote history by becoming the first African boxer to win the coveted Val Barker trophy after losing to eventual gold medalist, Mexico’s Antonio Roldan, in a controversial semi-final bout of the 1968 Olympics Games held in Mexico.

The trophy, which is a dream of any boxer at the Olympic Games, is named after the Englishman who was president of the International Boxing Association (AIBA).

OUTSTANDING BOXER

The trophy is awarded to boxers who win gold medals at every Olympics since 1938 and it goes to the most outstanding boxer “for demonstration of excellence in the ring.” Since Waruinge won Val Barker trophy at the age of 24, more than half a century ago, it has never returned to African soil. 

Besides Waruinge, Nakuru is home of athletics champions and world record breakers, football stars and their names will feature prominently in the gallery.

“We want to recognise all sportsmen and women who made a remarkable footprint in the sporting arena in Nakuru County and we want to document their history and those who will come after us will read their achievements,” said Frank Mwangi, the County Lands and Housing and Physical Planning executive who is heading the project.

“We are now in the final stage of the grand design and the next step is procurement which should take a month or two and construction should start in either October or November,” added Mwangi.

He is optimistic that the ground breaking which will usher in the construction work will not be delayed.

“We have cleared most of the paperwork and we are on course. We should start construction work this year as scheduled,” he added.

The project whose first phase will cost more than Sh500 million will give the popular facility a new look that will see it rise to the league of the Nyayo National Stadium and Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani.

A worker sprinkles water at the football pitch at Afraha Stadium in Nakuru on April 21, 2020. The stadium is under the county government. The stadium is under the county government. PHOTO | FRANCIS MUREITHI | NATION MEDIA GROUP

The construction work funded by the World Bank through Kenya Urban Support Programme, will be in three phases at an estimated cost of Sh4 billion over the next five years. A top official at the newly formed Nakuru Municipal Board which will oversee the construction confirmed that this financial year the funds will be under the board.

And it will be all systems go when the ground breaking of construction of an ultra-modern stadium on the 23 acres kicks off in earnest later this year. Once finished, the stadium will be a game changer in the football mad town and will usher in one of the best sporting landmarks in the cosmopolitan county.

“The uncertainty of the construction work, is now behind us and if all goes according to the plan the ground breaking ceremony will be at the beginning of the last quarter of this year,” said Mwangi.

Once complete, the stadium will have an-all weather running track, modern changing rooms, VIP stands, main stands and media rooms. It will also have several jogging lanes, about eight entry gates and four exit gate, six ramps to cater for the disabled, toilets, offices and accommodation units.

STADIUM HIGHLIGHTS

  • Phase one of the project will cost more than Sh500m, the sitting capacity will be for at least 15,000 people.
  • The stadium will have a new tartan track that would be ideal for middle distance runners since Nakuru is strategically placed between high and lower attitudes. The football pitch will be of international standards and the dilapidated Russia stand will also get a new face. The stadium will have a presidential pavilion, kitchen and lounge.
  • There will be ample presidential and public parking. Football teams, both visiting and home teams will each have special changing rooms and a gym. A historical gallery to capture sporting history of the Nakuru County will be displayed in a tunnel leading to changing rooms.