The Sport, Arts, Recreation and Culture Deputy Minister Emily Jesaya on Wednesday said that renovations at the National Sports Stadium will not be completed this year as there is still a lot of work that needs to be done at the facility.
Jesaya was speaking after the Sports Recreation Arts and Culture Parliamentary Portfolio Committee had called off a tour of the stadium due to the lack of progress on the ongoing renovations. She said (via NewZimbabwe.com):
We have made significant strides which possibly to date may not be seen because we have some other works which we are waiting for.
So I just want to take this time and opportunity to address the nation and say the Ministry is committed and we are going to work with the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee to make sure we do the refurbishment in time.
Possibly we may not be able to do it this year but we want to assure the nation that we will play here in Zimbabwe.
Minister of Finance, Economic Development, and Investment Promotion, Mthuli Ncube, allocated ZWL$136 billion to the Ministry of Sport in the 2024 national budget.
ZWL$24 billion of that amount was specifically for the renovations of the National Sports Stadium.
As a result, Sports Minister Kirsty Coventry was confident that the stadium would be ready to host international games by June 2024.
However, this has not materialized and Zimbabwe will “host” Lesotho at Orlando Stadium in South Africa on June 7 in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier.
Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) chairperson Gerald Mlotshwa told the Portfolio Committee that the government is yet to release funds for the renovations. He said:
Let’s go back to what the Minister said to Parliament, which was also on the back of assurances she had got from the treasury.
This is why I am saying we need to take collective responsibility and ask ourselves why the renovations are not happening as expected.
At the end of the day if Treasury has not met its promise we remain tied also on pushing the works.
We also have to be reminded that some of the funds might have been diverted because of the declared national disaster of an El Nino drought.
Some key aspects of the renovations include the installation of bucket seats and electronic turnstiles, setting up a functional Venue Operations Centre (VOC), and renovation of B – Arena.
The ablution facilities, changing rooms, and the water reticulation system also need to be addressed.
