An audit report on the sustainability of sports stadia in the country indicates that the Ministry of Youth and Sport (MoYS) did not have a policy on operations and maintenance of the stadia while the National Sports Authority (NSA) did not also have a plan to operate and maintain the various stadia.

The audit report also revealed that the management of MoYS and NSA did not have monitoring and evaluation strategies to evaluate the performance of the various stadia to ensure their physical and financial sustainability.

The report further identified that management of the five major stadia did not put maintenance and action plans in place to maintain the facilities though they had estate units with engineers and technical staff.

With regard to revenue generation, the audit noted that the NSA and management of the five stadia did not put in place measures to ensure that the commercial facilities were put to maximum use to generate revenue for the physical and financial sustainability of the stadia.

The Auditor-General, thus, recommended that the MoYS should in line with the Sports Act, 2016 (Act 934), develop policies regarding the operations and maintenance of the various stadia for NSA Board and Management to implement and put in place a mechanism to monitor and evaluate the implementation of these policies to ensure the physical and financial sustainability of the Sports Stadia.

“I also recommended that in the immediate to short term, NSA through MoYS should request for the Operations and Maintenance Manuals from the contractors who constructed the stadia and put together a team of experts to evaluate the maintenance needs of the stadia and come up with a sustainable plan for maintenance”, it added.

It further recommended that the NSA should collaborate with management of the stadia to conduct a market survey with a view to developing price lists and revenue targets for each stadium for implementation; find alternative uses for the shops and enter into formal tenancy agreements with all tenants.