Wajir County has been told to improve infrastructure in the region to help nurture talent in different sports disciplines.
Businessman, Siyad Hassan, urged county leaders to work together and improve infrastructure, especially stadiums, to help talented youth realize their dream.
“During my youthful days in Wajir Town, we lacked proper sports equipment and platforms to showcase our talents. It’s nostalgic when I see our children undergoing the same trend,” Siyad said.
The businessman was speaking during the finals of the Siyad tournament, where Junior Round-4(JR4) was crowned champions after beating Wajir Police 1-0. Wajir Police knocked out Kenya Defence Forces in semis as JR4 humbled Al-Hayat FC.
He said investing in nurturing talents is key to a thriving economy, as football and sports, in general, are multibillion-dollar ventures.
Harambee Stars’ head coach Engin Firat said he is surprised to be the first national team coach to ever visit Wajir county.
“Coming to Wajir gave me experience in understanding the problems we are facing in football in Kenya. I guess my visit to Wajir will put us in a good position to address them going forward,” Firat added.
Principal Secretary of Youth Affairs and the Arts, Ismail Maalim, said the government will put programs in place to ensure facilities are improved but urged the youth to ensure they are making good use of them.
“Our children have to make use of these platforms, maintain discipline, and shun radical ideologies,” Ismail said.
He said President William Ruto will launch the Talanta Hela program on March 16 which will be geared towards not only showcasing talents but also monetizing them.
Wajir counties, like its sister counties Mandera and Garissa, don’t have standard football stadiums, despite receiving billions of shillings from the national government with sports as a devolved function.
Kenya Football Federation CEO Barry Otieno was also in attendance.
