Independence stadium upgrade to cost N$1 billion 

The government is expected to spend up to N$1 billion on the renovation of the Independence Stadium in Windhoek, says the Ministry of Sport, Youth and National Service’s executive director Erastus Haitengela.

The upgrade will take around two and a half years to complete, he told Desert FM this week. These are the findings of the lead consultant, whose feasibility report was received last week.

The lead consultant made comparative studies of other African nations undertaking similar projects to arrive at the recommendations.

“We are talking about a cost that is above a billion. The comparative research is showing how much Rwanda has spent.

Tanzania started their upgrade in April 2024 and will complete the upgrade and renovation in April next year,” said Haitengela. He added that the Tanzanian stadium project mirrors that of Namibia.

“It is exactly the same process. Ours will maybe take two-and-a-half years to two years if we are lucky. On an average this type of project takes three-years, remember we are upgrading even the seating capacity from what it is to 30 000, so it requires that we put up another structure from what is there,” said Haitengela.

Due to the age of the stadium, Haitengela said, the project will require significant demolition, including of the VVIP and ablution facilities. The next step, according to the executive director, is for the ministry and relevant stakeholders to acquaint themselves with the report by 28 February, following which further steps will be announced to the public.

Namibia Football Association spokesperson Isack Hamata said the association has not been contacted regarding these developments, when contacted for comment yesterday.

However, Hamata welcomed the progress being made to accelerate the renovation process.

“We hope that one day we will be able to see the Brave Warriors and the Brave Gladiators playing right here at home,” he said.

Haitengela said that the relevant sport ministry officials will meet during the course of the next two weeks to finalise the presentation.

Additionally, the lead consultant has already briefed the City of Windhoek which means the sport ministry will be able to begin the project in the near future, Haitengela said.

“One other external factor that we have to take care of is the recommendation which involves other external stakeholders like the City of Windhoek because of the land outside the stadium that we need to incorporate,” he said. While the volume of required stakeholder engagements may cause delays, Haitengela said, the ministry is hopeful that they will be held soon.