Uganda will in the next 20 months have a modern Olympics stadium following the signing of a contract with an Egyptian company to construct the said structure.
According to State House, the contract was signed last week at State House under the witness of the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Ms Janet Museveni.
The 20,000-seat Akii Bua Olympic Stadium will be constructed in Lira City, located in Northern Uganda.
“The stadium project will cost $129 million and is scheduled for completion within 20 months,” State House said in a statement.
Muhammad Bbaale, the Accounting Officer of National Council for Sports (NCS), signed on behalf of the Government of Uganda and the National Council of Sports, while Ibrahim Abdelaziz Mahmoud Mabrouk signed for SAMCO.
Mrs Museveni handed over the land title for the 18.455 hectares where the stadium will be constructed.
The State Minister for Sports, Peter Ogwang, described the planned Akii Bua Stadium as a state-of-the-art facility.
According to the plan, the complex will feature a 20,000-seater main stadium with an athletic track, training facilities with at least two changing rooms, a 2,000-seat multi-sport indoor stadium, a 25-meter semi-Olympic swimming pool, outdoor courts for basketball, netball, volleyball, and badminton, and a 1,000-vehicle parking facility.
“The site will include comprehensive infrastructure: roads, utilities, ICT systems, a sewerage treatment plant, landscaping, perimeter fencing, and security systems,” State House noted. “Additional facilities include a fully furnished clubhouse for stadium operations, a 60-room hostel, five sports pitches, and a borehole to reduce water maintenance costs.”
About John Akii Bua
Born in 1949, Akii-Bua was the first Ugandan Olympic champion after winning a gold medal in a 400m hurdles in 1972.
He won awards, including the Olympic Gold 1972 Munich 400 m hurdles, All-Africa Games: Gold 1973 Lagos 400 m hurdles, and All-Africa Games: Silver 1978 Algiers 400 m hurdles.
