KCB Bank Kenya has committed Sh100 million sponsorship towards the 2021 World Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally, which will return to Kenya and Africa after a 19-year absence.
The bank is the official financial partner of the championship, which will be held on June 24-27.
“We take pleasure that our sponsorship has sustained motorsport and helped build a critical mass of talent competing in local and international platforms. The ambition is to progress this association into the elite level of global rallying," said KCB Group CEO and MD Joshua Oigara, while presenting the sponsorship cheque to Sports cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed.
"We believe the upcoming event is a great opportunity to demonstrate Kenya’s growing credentials as a global sports powerhouse.”
Amina hailed the bank for their continued support for sports and especially Kenya Motorsport Federation activities.
“The sponsorship is a significant milestone for the Safari Rally as we have an indigenous institution supporting one of the most iconic events in Africa. KCB has been proactive in supporting sporting activities and nurturing of talents around the country across all the games,” said Mohamed.
Phineas Kimathi, KMSF chairman and Safari Rally Chief Executive said the WRC will cover 797 kilometres in Nairobi, Naivasha and Kiambu counties.
“After successfully staging the African Rally Championships (ARC) Equator Rally over the weekend, we are confident that we can host a bigger and even more exciting event,” said Kimathi.
WRC is one of the oldest and leading global motorsport competitions and is governed by Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, (FIA). The global event returned to Kenya in 2020, after a nearly two-decade hiatus but was put off due to the global outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Oigara said the latest sponsorship demonstrates the bank's commitment towards sports. Over the past 18 years, KCB has invested over Sh1.2 billion towards supporting motorsports, largely rallies and autocross circuits, through Kenya Motorsports Federation (KMSF).
Additionally, KCB have invested Sh820 million in supporting the bank’s sports teams—football, volleyball, rugby and chess in the past decade. The bank has also spent over Sh300 million on golf tournaments during the same period.
