David GOMBE
The State Minister for Sport Peter Ogwang has confirmed that Phase two for Namboole Stadium remodeling will cost $60 million (about UGX.225 billion) to fit the CAF standards.
Ogwang made the revelation while appearing on Nbs Sport on Monday and also assured that they are going to remodel the stadium to CAF Standards.
“We are going to remodel namboole based on the CAF recommendation. The government has funds worth $60m for phase two. We sat with the contractor which is the UPDF engineering brigade and the supervisor, Ministry of works. We are having the contract cleared and once it is cleared we are going to hand it over to updf once again to have it remodeled to fit caf standards. Namboole design is of 1970 and today we are dealing with designs of 2024, 2025 and now 2026.” Stated Ogwang
He also confirmed that over 8000 seats are to be added to the Stadium.
“Around 8000 seats will be added at Namboole Stadium… it’s not going to be easy work. It’s easy to build a new stadium than remodeling.”
Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania is set to host the 2027 edition of the Africa Cup of Nation but last month the CAF inspection team stated that the three nations were not ready to host the mega showpiece at the time.
According to the CAF report, Mandela National Stadium requires major upgrading works, indicating it currently presents major compliance gaps with CAF Category 4 requirements.
A large-scale upgrade project has been proposed, including:
•Partial demolition of the West Stand;
structural expansion;
•roof replacement.
However, the initial 15-month construction timeline is incompatible with AFCON 2027 delivery requirements. CAF has therefore recommended revising the upgrade strategy to:
•Maximise use of the existing structural frame;
•Reduce construction duration to target completion by December 2026.