Botswana faces decisions on ‘difficult’ bid
Mqondisi Dube - Chakalisa Dube | Saturday April 1, 2023 06:00
A South African firm, Reuben Reddy Architects was tasked with auditing facilities in both Botswana and Namibia as the two countries prepare to launch an official bid for the 2027 AFCON finals.
However, sources said the route is fraught with challenges but the two nations are determined to soldier on. A third country joining the bid, possibly Zambia, has been mooted to lessen the burden as co-hosting will see Botswana required to build an additional two stadiums.
Although the contents of the facilities audit report have been kept a secret, indications are that Botswana, as the majority shareholder in the project, might be required to build a 40,000-capacity stadium. In accumulation, another facility is required as presently, Botswana has three facilities that can be upgraded to meet CAF standards for hosting AFCON finals.
Botswana and Namibia agreed to a 60-40% hosting arrangement, respectively. “A third country has been explored so that it addresses the issue of us building more stadiums,” the source said.
The concerns are over the budget for hosting, which could balloon up to P10 billion if Botswana is to build new facilities. “The budget request was more than the P1.1 billion that the government will set aside.
The amount could be way higher depending on the facilities' audit requirements. It is a difficult bid,” the source said. With Botswana determined to land the hosting rights, Minister of Youth, Sport, Gender and Culture, Tumiso Rakgare indicated the facilities report is still undergoing scrutiny. “We are still waiting for the bid committee. The focus now is on producing the bid book.
The facilities audit is just a small component of what we will present to CAF,” Rakgare told Mmegi Sport yesterday. He ruled out Zambia as a hosting partner, saying their arrangement is with Namibia. In a statement, the bid committee said the findings of the facilities audit report will not be released to the public yet. “Although currently, the audit findings will be reserved for careful interrogation by the relevant authorities within the two governments, including being presented to the heads of states Botswana and Namibia, the committee stands in unison with entities charged with realising the feat of securing the joint bid that due process must be followed in unpacking the audit findings,” reads the statement. Rakgare, meanwhile, said the findings of the audit report, need to be carefully studied, according to the bid committee statement.
It is unclear if both countries will abandon the bid if the required budget is too steep.
* Third country was mooted * Audit report to be presented to Presidents Masisi, Geingob