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The Treasury has proposed an allocation of Sh90 million for the refurbishment of the regional stadiums in the 2021/2022 financial year.
The allocation by Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and Planning, Ukur Yatani in his Budget speech on Thursday, is part of the 7.1 percent increase of allocation to Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund for the coming financial year.
Yatani proposed an allocation of Sh15 billion to the kitty, an increase by Sh1 billion from the 2020/2021 financial year.
Yatani said the provision will go a long way in stimulating tourism recovery, sports, culture, recreation and arts sectors that were significantly affected by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing containment measures.
To support recovery of these sectors, Yatani proposed an allocation of Sh1.7 billion for the Tourism Fund and Sh 643 million for Tourism Promotion Fund and Sh90 million for refurbishment of the regional stadiums.
The proposals will take Sh2.43 billion as Yatani failed to give details on how the remaining Sh 12.6 billion will be spent.
However, the fund caters across with 60 per cent from the proposed budgetary allocation going to social development which includes universal health care, 35 per cent for sports and five per cent to arts.
The 7.1 per cent increase in the coming financial year is a huge contrast from the 2020/2021 financial year where the treasury had proposed a 150 per cent increase from what it had allocated for the year 2019/2020. It availed Sh5.3 billion to the fund for the 2019/2020 financial year.
Parliament is now supposed to approve the allocation.
Among the regional stadiums that have been still under construction or renovations since 2017 with the government having spent over Sh1 billion on them are Kipchoge Keino in Uasin Gishu, Kamariny (Elgeyo Marakwet County) and Ruring’u Stadium (Nyeri).
Others are Wote Stadium in Makueni and Kinoru Stadium in Meru.
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