6 Somhlolo Stadium CAF moot points
● Public Toilets, VIP Hospitality area, retractable tunnel, VIP Parking and gates, giant screen and backup power generator still missing. ● Government has allocated E35 million for the Phase II rehabilitation but the funds will only be released in April
THE Eswatini Football Association (EFA) is still to shell more thousands of Emalangeni hosting the national team Sihlangu Semnikati home games away from Eswatini as the national stadium, Somhlolo is far from being CAF/ FIFA accredited.
The country’s soccer mecca still lacks six key areas to meet the Confederation of African Football (CAF) A-category games hosting standards.
The six key areas still outstanding are namely, public toilets, VIP hospitality area, retractable tunnel, VIP parking and gates, giant screen and backup power generator. On top of the missing key areas, despite the government allocating a sum of E35 million to have the six key areas addressed, the funds will only be available a month before the next visit by the CAF Inspection team who are expected to come to Eswatini in June.
The Government funds (E35 million) for the national stadium Phase II rehabilitation will only be released between April and May.
However, Sihlangu Semnikati could play at home the next Caf-sanctioned match in September when the 2025 AFCON Group stage qualifiers begin on two conditions. The first one would be if Sihlangu beat Somalia in the second leg tie of the preliminary round on Tuesday in Mbombela to qualify for the Group stages and the second is if the CAF inspection makes another visit before the AFCON Group stages qualifiers in September.
Report
According to a report delivered by Sifiso Shabalala, the Chairman of the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Portfolio Committee, which was adopted and passed in Parliament last week Friday, for now, the Ministry is looking at rehabilitating Somhlolo National Stadium as the best option to allow sports people to have an adequate facility to use while avenues for the construction of a new stadium are still being explored.
When asked by one of the Members of Parliament, what were the outstanding
PLE special meeting a damp squib:
CAF requirements for Somhlolo National Stadium, the Portfolio Committee said: “The remaining requirements are public toilets, VIP hospitality area, retractable tunnel, VIP Parking and gates, giant screen and backup power generator.”
The E35 million for the Somhlolo National Stadium Phase II rehabilitation in the 2024/2025 budget estimates has been broken down as follows. A sum of E10 million will cover the VVIP hospitality area, E3 million will be for extending the current Media Room area, E3 million will be for giant screens on both ends of the stadium, E9 million will go towards toilets and a sewer line, E2 million will cover the backup generator, E1 million for the retractable tunnel and E5 million will cover professional fees and contingencies.
Minister of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Bongani Nzima told members of the media during the farewell function for the Team Eswatini who were off to participate in the Africa Games in Ghana a fortnight ago, that his ministry will apply ‘Nkwe’ approach as commanded by His Majesty King Mswati III during the last Sibaya’s People’s Parliament to give Somhlolo National Stadium the muchneeded facelift and save the country from the embarrassment of hosting home games away from home.