Ethiopia eyes hosting CHAN 2022
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) inaugurated a stadium in East Wellega Zone in Nekemte town on Thursday 11, 2019. The Nekemte stadium has a capacity of 30,000 and has consumed over 190 million birr.
President of the Oromia Regional State, Lemma Megersa, and other top federal and regional officials were also present at the inauguration ceremony. In his opening speech, Abiy stated that the newly built stadium has a pivotal role in serving as the main recreational center for the youth of the town.
It has been ten years since the construction of the stadium began. The final phase of the stadium construction is expected to be finalized in the coming years and will cost more than 150 million birr to finish the remaining phases.
The government has been making efforts to build and expand regional stadiums and sport centers. Besides Nekemte, similar regional stadiums were constructed in towns like Bahir Dar, Mekele, Hawasa and Woldia. However, there have been many gaps in the quality of the construction and finalizing the stadiums in the required time.
Following the undergoing construction of stadiums, the 2022 African Nations Championship (CHAN) was scheduled to be hosted in Ethiopia. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) inspection team has been evaluating the general preparation and specific requirements of the stadiums. The EFF is also going to be announcing the final decision of hosting the 2022 CHAN tournament in the coming days The Reporter has learnt.
