Kenya yearning for Sports revitalization, says Namwamba

Sports Minister Ababu Namwamba says the country is yearning for sports revitalization which can only be achieved if the county governments work closely with the national government.

Namwamba made the remarks when he met county sports executives from the 47 counties urging them to work closely with the national government to develop sports.

“This country is yearning for a fresh start in the area of developing talents. This country is yearning for everybody to be involved in revitalizing our sports and arts. And for us to do that we have to go back to the basics,” Namwamba said.

He singled out Vihiga County after their women football team, Vihiga Queens, won the premier league title.

His sentiments were echoed by Onzele Mulongo who is the minister of sports of Vihiga.

"The governor of Vihiga has put in place adequate strategies because it is the only county in this country that has a sports law. In the financial year 2022-23, it allocated 20 million shillings which you can see has been well spent because even in the national leagues, Vihiga was represented by four teams - men and women," said Onzele.

Last month the county government of Vihiga announced that in collaboration with the Kenya Academy of Sports (KAS) it intends to set up a county sports academy to nurture talents among residents.

They made the announcement after Governor Wilber Ottichilo met with Academy’s chief executive officer Doreen Odhiambo, promising to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) “very soon” so as to pave the way for the implementation of the project.