The national government of Kenya is set to take over construction Dandora Stadium in Nairobi County. Nairobi County Education and Sports Executive Janet Ouko confirmed the report and said that the move follows delays by the stadium’s contractor to return on site to complete the construction of the Sh350 million facility.
“We are are mulling engaging the State Department for Public Works, in a government-to-government agreement, to take over the remaining bit of work at the stadium,” said Janet Ouko.
The project is part of Sh1.3 billion stadia contract awarded to Scanjet Construction Limited in the 2017/2018 financial year for the construction of four stadia in Nairobi including Kawangware (Sh250 million), Kihumbuini (Sh250 million) and Ziwani (Sh186.6 million).
Dandora Stadium
Consequently, construction work at the stadium was stopped after the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) opened investigations into the tendering process and irregular payment of Sh196 million for the project.
This followed an investigation by the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) which flagged irregularities in the awarding of the tender, alteration of contract specifications, suspected irregular payments and forgery of documents while also questioning the standard of the work.
M/S Scanjet was awarded the construction of the project. However, the contractor would then leave the site in September, 2019, delaying the final touches that were remaining. The project is currently 80% complete. It was set to be launched last year July, but the investigations resulted in work at the stadium to stall. Already, more than 3,000 seats had been installed in the terraces with changing rooms and floodlights fitted.
Electronic advertising boards
The new Dandora Stadium project whose aim is to help nurture talent and also keep the youth busy through sports, will have notable features such as FIFA approved artificial turf and seats, modern flood lights, modern stalls and a gym center.
This facility will be the first of its kind in East Africa to display electronic advertising boards. The stadium also has a reception office, home and away dressing rooms, each consisting of eight lockers, shower rooms, urinals, and toilets. There also rooms for match referees, stadium manager offices. CCTV cameras have also been installed.
