Residents of Vihiga County and the wider Western region are set to benefit from the construction of the 10,000-capacity Kidundu Stadium following its groundbreaking by President William Ruto.
The project, which is expected to transform sports and economic activities in the area, has already received strong support from local residents, including families that voluntarily surrendered land for its development.
In an interview with KNA, Duncan Vulimu, chairman of the families that gave up their parcels of land, confirmed that out of the 23 affected families, four have been fully compensated, acquired alternative land and successfully relocated.
He noted that two families have not yet been compensated but have already moved, while the remaining 17 are awaiting compensation before they can vacate their land.
Vulimu urged the national government to expedite the compensation process to ensure timely relocation of all affected families and allow construction works to proceed within the planned timelines.
He revealed that the project initially sat on three acres of land donated by residents, but an additional 20 acres have since been contributed by the 23 families to support the development of a modern, international-standard stadium with comprehensive facilities.
The chairman expressed satisfaction that a long-standing dream of having a stadium at Kidundu is finally being realized, noting that his grandfather was among those who donated land for the project in 1986.
Once complete, the stadium will serve as a home ground for local football teams, including Vihiga Queens, Vihiga Bullets and Vihiga United, reducing the need for teams to travel to Kisumu for matches and cutting operational costs.
Vulimu added that the construction phase is expected to create employment opportunities for local residents, particularly casual workers, as well as stimulate business activities that will improve livelihoods in the area.
During the visit, President Ruto also handed over 220 units under Phase One of the Affordable Housing Programme in Vihiga and commissioned the construction of an additional 1,000 units under Phase Two.
He further broke ground for the Sh900 million Kidundu Sports Stadium and laid the foundation stone for the Mbale Modern Market project, which is currently at 4.1 percent completion.
By Maureen Imbayi
