20/03/2025
HOIMA CITY STADIUM: PRESIDENT MUSEVENI IMPRESSED WITH PROGRESS, LOOKS TO FURTHER SPORTS INFRASTRUCTURE
*HOIMA* - President Yoweri Museveni has asked Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja to raise matters regarding the facilitation of building of new hotels in Hoima City, as well as boosting emergency health services and roads, in Cabinet next Monday.
The President said this yesterday, right after he had unveiled the foundation stone of the fast-rising Hoima City Stadium which is one of the designated venues for 2027 African Cup of Nations finals to be hosted by East African neighbours Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
Presiding over the function alongside First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Maama Janet Museveni, the President was reacting to observations from State Minister of Sports Hon. Peter Ogwang and suggestions from Hoima City Mayor Brian Kaboyo that government incentivise the private sector with loans from UDB and the like.
Mayor Kaboyo revealed that his city currently had only 1700 beds or thereabouts, but would need around 20,000 beds to accommodate the projected influx of visitors for the AFCON tournament in 2027. The President was confident the gap would be filled, citing the success story of the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) as a result of which the number of hotel beds in host city Kampala had grown from around 4000 prior-to, to upwards of 20000 during and after.
President Museveni was however impressed by the speed at which Turkish construction giants SUMMA were going about constructing the stadium itself, along with all the other components of project which will make it the model modern day multi-discipline facility until the similarly designed Akii-Bua complex is later completed by Egyptian contractor SAMCO.
“This SUMMA seems to be a serious company, considering how much they have accomplished in a short period of time. I would like to congratulate them,” said the President, who confirmed that the Turks would embark on the second phase of the construction of Namboole Stadium, once they had wrapped up in Hoima.