Hon. Members, there is no quorum. Serjeant-at-Arms, you may ring the Quorum Bell.

Hon. Members, we now have the quorum to transact business.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table: 1. Reports of the Auditor-General and Financial Statements for the year ended 30th June 2022, and the certificates therein in respect of the following institutions: (a) Amani National Congress Party; and, (b) Forum for the Restoration of Democracy Kenya. 2. Reports of the Auditor-General and Financial Statements for the year ended 30th June 2022, and the certificates therein in respect of the following institutions: (a) Kenya Railways Corporation; and, (b) Kenya Electricity Transmission Company Limited. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you. Next is the Chairperson of the Committee on Public Petitions. The Vice-Chairperson is here. Hon. Janet, you may proceed.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table: Report of the Public Petitions Committee on its consideration of the following: (a) Public Petition No 41 of 2023 by Mr. Bob Ndolo regarding the banning of TikTok in Kenya. (b) Public Petition No 49 of 2023 by Mr. Hon. Protus Akujah regarding 41 Kenyans court marshalled and convicted for eight years imprisonment in Uganda. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you. Next Order.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motions: THAT, this House adopts the Report of the Public Petitions Committee on its consideration of Public Petition No.41 of 2023 by Mr. Bob Ndolo regarding the banning of TikTok in Kenya, laid on the Table of the House on Wednesday, 25th September 2024.

Hon. Beatrice Kemei.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, aware that the Kenya Roads Act 2007 mandates the various road authorities to, among other functions, control roads and road reserves and access to roadside developments; further aware that market centres are ordinarily constructed along road developments across the country; noting that due to improper planning, some of the market places have no access roads leading to buyers and traders to encroach on the roads and road reserves; further noting that there have been instances of accidents leading to multiple deaths due to that unregulated use of road developments; appreciating that proper access roads to market places could ease access by buyers and, therefore, avert accidents due to the converging of traders and buyers on roadsides and thus enhancing road safety and service delivery which provides opportunities for economic engagements for the traders; now therefore, this House resolves that the Government, through the Ministry of Roads and Transport, develops a framework to ensure that where the market centres exist along road developments, appropriate access is provided, including service lanes and access roads. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Next Order.

Hon. Speaker, I rise pursuant to Standing Order 259D (2) (b) to notify the House of the exceptional achievements of Ms. Esse Mbeyu Akida, a Kenyan professional woman footballer who is visiting the National Assembly today. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

I note that Ms. Esse Akida, who currently plays professional football in Greece, hails from Kilifi North Constituency and I would like to recognise her for her immense contribution to women football in Kenya.

Hon. Speaker, Ms. Akida is an exceptional professional Kenyan footballer born in Kilifi, a place where many people would not expect to produce football talents. Despite the misconception and strong cultural obstacles to women football, Ms. Akida defied the odds to become Kenya’s most decorated female footballer of her time. Her hope in football was sparked by Moving the Goalposts Organisation, a sport for development organisation that empowers girls and young women in Kilifi and Kwale. It is there that she honed her football skills, played for Moving the Goalposts (MTG) United in the National Women League and later joined Thika Queens, now Kenya Police Bullets; Matuu FC, formerly the National Youth Talent Academy and Spedag FC. She has also had successful international stints at Ramat HaSharon in Israel, Besiktas J.K in Turkey and Club PAOK Thessaloniki in Greece, her current club. Ms. Akida established herself as a skilful clinical striker. She became the all-time leading goal scorer for the Harambee Starlets and the first to score for Kenya at the Africa Women Cup of Nations Champions in 2016. She was also awarded the top scorer for the 2016 COTIF Women Football Tournament in Valencia, Spain, having scored five goals for the Harambee Starlets in four matches. Additionally, she scored a hat-trick in Harambee Stars' 3-0 win against Benfica Football Women Club and contributed to the scoring of two goals in the 3-1 win against Española Women at the 2016 COTIF Women Football Club. Beyond her sports achievement, Ms. Akida founded the Esse Akida Foundation in Kilifi to support communities in nurturing football talents. In recognition of her immense contribution and inspiration to girls and young women in pursuit of their destinies, the County Government of Kilifi crowned Ms. Akida with the Youth Heroine of Kilifi County Award in 2016. Ms. Akida is an inspirational personality who has gone beyond playing football and authored a book called ‘Chained’. The inspiring book details the challenges that she has had to surmount to realise the triumphs that she has made in her pursuit of football stardom against cultural expectations. It is on the basis of those spectacular achievements by Ms. Esse Akida, who is in the House today, that I sought your indulgence to recognise her and record my tribute in her honour in this august House. I thank you, Hon. Speaker. The said Ms. Akida is in the House.

Ms. Akida, you may stand up to be acknowledged.

Congratulations! Well done! Ms. Akida is accompanied by the ACK Bishop of the Diocese of Malindi, Dr. Reuben Katite; Rev. Kashuru Joseph, Vicar-General and Lay Canon Kithi, the Treasurer to the Diocese. Welcome to the House of Parliament. Yes, Hon. Milemba.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. As we acknowledge the presence and the achievements of Ms. Akida, who is in the House, I want to indicate that she is already an inspiration to the young girls. Football sport for girls in this country is not very old. It was introduced around 1993-1995. Currently, it has surpassed the The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

otherwise celebrated football for the men, which I happen to have played and, at one time, called to the national team. I am happy that the Members of the Bunge FC, including the goalkeeper, who is the Member of Parliament for Kitutu Masaba, are in the House. We encourage the other girls who are practising and playing football to be inspired by Ms. Akida, who has gone beyond the boundaries. By doing so, the football sport for girls can become the best beyond the one for the men, given that we have since lost the glory exhibited by Harambee Stars during the times of legendary players like Mulamba, Masiga, Obwaka and the rest of us. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Irene Mayaka.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. As a soccer enthusiast, let me acknowledge Ms. Akida for the fantastic job she has done, for even going ahead to write a book. Ms. Akida is one of those girls from the Harambee Starlets who continue to inspire other girls in this country to play soccer. I want to inform the Bunge FC members who are here that if you did not know, for the first time in Kenya, the Women Soccer under-17 team has taken Kenya to the World Cup. This is something that has never happened before in this country, and it is because of people like her who continue to inspire our girls. I wish her the very best. On my behalf and that of the other ladies, I want to congratulate Ms. Akida. Thank you for your book. You inspire us. Thank you.

Yes, Hon. Tandaza.

Ahsante sana, Mhe. Spika, kwa kunipa fursa hii. Natoa shukrani zangu na kongole kwa dada yetu kutoka Pwani, Bi. Akida, ambaye ameweza kufika kiwango cha kimataifa. Hii ni kuonyesha kwamba talanta za soka ziko kila mahali, hata kule Pwani. Mwezi uliopita, tulipeleka kijana kutoka Pwani kwenye kambi ya mbio kule Bomet. Kwa hivyo, tunakosa tu vifaa na mafunzo, lakini dada yetu ametuonyesha kwamba Wapwani tunaweza kusaidia kusukuma gurudumu la talanta mpaka kufika kwenya ngazi za kimaitafa, tukijua kwamba talanta ni ajira. Ahsante, Mhe. Spika. Kongole dada yetu, Akida.

Naomba tufungie hapo. Kwa niamba ya Bunge lote, Mama Akida, tunakushukuru sana kwa heshima ambayo umeiletea nchi yetu. Endelea kuwasaidia wasichana wadogo nchini Kenya waweze kunawirisha talanta zao katika michezo, haswa soka. Ahsante sana.

Hon. Abdikadir Mohamed, Member for Lagdera. Give him the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I have a request for a statement regarding elephant invasions and presence of lions in parts of Lagdera Constituency. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c), I request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife regarding the increased invasions of elephants and recent presence of lions in parts of Lagdera Constituency. The rise in human-wildlife conflicts currently being experienced in various parts of Lagdera Constituency is alarming. This has become an issue of urgent public concern as it threatens the safety, well-being and livelihoods of local communities. There have been multiple dangerous encounters involving stray elephants and lions, which have already resulted in tragic loss of life and serious injuries. The first incident, which was reported on 2nd September 2024, involved a stray elephant at Maalmin Location, Togdub Sub-location, which caused the death of a resident, Mr Khalif Jellow Qase of ID No. 27569468 and some goats. A second attack took place in Serbi area of Modogashe Township on 22nd September 2024, severely injuring Mr. Hassan Ibrahim and Mr. Mohamed Ibrahim. On 10th September 2024, residents reported seeing two stray lions in the Modogashe and Ilan areas. The lions were seen within human settlements where most of the community’s socio-economic activities, including livestock rearing, takes place. The presence of those predators has created widespread fear as they pose a direct threat to the lives of both the residents and their livestock. It is against this backdrop that I seek a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife on the following: 1. Immediate measures being taken by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and other relevant authorities to protect the lives of the affected residents and their livestock from further wildlife invasions; 2. Plans that are in place to mitigate future wildlife intrusions, especially in areas that are prone to frequent wildlife movement and immediate measures on how the Government and relevant agencies will ensure that local communities are adequately protected from such dangers, moving forward; 3. Clarity on the type of assistance and compensation that will be offered to the families of the deceased, those who have been injured and those who have lost their livestock; and, 4. Any plans on a broader wildlife management strategy being developed, if any, specifically targeting communities living close to wildlife zones, to ensure that such conflicts are minimised in the future

Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife.

Kareke? Is the Vice-Chair of the Committee in? Deputy Majority Whip, where are your chairmen?

Hon. Speaker, some are not here. I will make sure that they…

Inform them to bring a response in two weeks’ time.

I will do so, Hon. Speaker.

Before we move to the next Order, allow me to acknowledge students who are seated in the Public Gallery. They are from Karii Kamburi Secondary School from Tharaka Constituency in Tharaka-Nithi County; Mihuti Secondary School from Mathioya Constituency in Murang’a County and Withare Primary from Laikipia East Constituency in Laikipia County.

The Member for Tharaka, Hon. Murugara, has asked me to allow him to acknowledge students of the school from his constituency. Please, extend it to welcome the rest of the schools. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. Allow me to welcome students from Karii Kamburi Secondary School and the other schools, to observe the proceedings of this august House. This is the National Assembly, a part of the Parliament of Kenya. We are happy to see the youngsters who have come to observe how we conduct business in this House. They must learn because they are our future leaders. They will succeed us when our time to exit comes. Karii Kamburi Secondary School is one of the youngest secondary schools in Tharaka Constituency. They perform very well academically and in sports. I am proud to host them here today so that together with the rest of the team, they can see how the august House works. With those remarks, I welcome the schools and wish them a very happy stay in the House and in Nairobi as they continue with their learning tour. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you, Hon. Murugara. On behalf of the House and myself, we welcome the students and their teachers to this House of Parliament.

On a point of order, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, Hon. Clive. What is it about?

It is a follow-up on a previous statement request, Hon. Speaker.

Go ahead.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to follow up on a statement I sought on 24th April, 2024 regarding the status of the Kenya Digital Economy Acceleration Project that is funded by the World Bank. I would like the Chairman, Hon. Kiarie, to listen because I was promised that a response would be brought to this House after two weeks. After waiting for three months without getting a response, I rose on a point of order and reminded the House that there was a statement requested that had not been responded to. Again, the Chairman, Hon. Kiarie, promised that he would bring a response to the House in one-and-half weeks’ time. Two months later, I hereby rise again to remind him that the two weeks he had requested for have since lapsed, but he is yet to respond to my request. This is a weighty issue because the money involved, which is US$390 million, was meant for the last-mile connectivity to the Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). That money has either vanished or simply no response is supposed to be given. Can I be informed whether or not there is a response so that I can restructure my statement request into a question with more facts and present it to the House? Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

There is no provision under which you can restructure your question or request for a statement. Hon. KJ, from April to now, is inordinately long.

Hon. Speaker, I acknowledge that the request was made on 28th May and we channelled it to the Ministry. There was a great delay of the response that we were expecting from the Ministry. However, on 3rd September 2024, we received a response. You always tell us that committees are here to work. The Committee considered the response from the Ministry, but it was not a report that we were ready to table in the House in the form and style that it was in. So, we asked the clerk assistant to the Committee to schedule the report for the presentation in the House. At the same time, we have also sought the specificities that we thought were lacking in the response from the Ministry. Those two processes are going on concurrently. There is a response that we feel is inadequate to respond to the questions that have been raised. We also feel that the Ministry ought to offer more specificities to the responses that they have given to the Committee. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

I can assure Hon. Clive that we are taking that issue very seriously. It goes to the core of Kenya's super digital highway project. If answered properly, it will be for the benefit of all the Members in this House. We have an insufficient report which is already being channelled through the system. As they do so, there are some specificities that we are still seeking from the Ministry. I thank you for your magnanimity, Hon. Speaker.

Order, Members at the bar. Order, Members conducting an illegal

in the Chamber. Hon. K.J., that explanation is inadequate. The right thing to do if you get a response from the Ministry that is, in your opinion, inadequate, is to bring it to the House and seek the permission of the Chair to go back and get more information. Secondly, you also have a duty, if the response is inadequate, to inform your colleague who requested for a statement that you have an answer which, in your view, does not address all the issues and that you need to go back and get more information. Thirdly, the opportunity is available to you to summon the Ministry, the Cabinet Secretary and his team, to appear before your Committee and invite the Questioner to also attend so that you can deal with the issues. To wait from April to now is unacceptable.

Hon. Speaker, I can confirm to the House that we have taken the course of action that you are directing us to take. There are members of the Committee here. I can see Hon. Kivasu and Mhe. Irene Mayaka. They can bear me witness that we have okayed the report, even in its inadequate form, to be brought to the House so that even as the process of seeking the specificities goes on, we still present it. I have also had an occasion to have a one-on-one engagement with Hon. Clive. I have informed him of the situation. Members of the Committee can bear witness that we have decided to summon the Cabinet Secretary so that he can put the record straight, specifically about the issue that has been raised by Hon. Clive. We have taken the course of action that you have recommended. Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you. Hon. Members, after I put the questions on Orders 8 and 9, the Leader of the Majority Party should arrange to bring in the Cabinet Secretary who is coming to respond to Questions this afternoon. Next Order.

Hon. Maungu, take the nearest seat.

Members on your feet, resume your seats.

Who moved the Coffee Bill? Is Hon. Mutunga in the House? Call the next Order.

Hon. Mutunga, can you reply?

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me an opportunity to reply to the debate on the Coffee Bill. The Members of this House have declared coffee as an important crop, and it is grown in 33 counties of Kenya. It occupies about 800,000 small-scale farmers and more than 4,000 districts. The Bill recognises the industry and bestows responsibilities on the county governments, the national Government, the Coffee Board of Kenya and the Coffee Research and Training Institute, among other public institutions. Farmers are waiting for the passage of this Bill. They are waiting for a law on coffee to ease the problems that have been there for a while, because that is a valuable crop to them. Having passed through the Senate, this Bill is at the tail-end of receiving parliamentary approval for us to have a law on coffee that expunges coffee from the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) and sets up its own authority. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

In conclusion, during the Committee of the whole House, the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock of the National Assembly will propose some amendments. Some private Members will also propose amendments to make this law sharper and better for Kenyans. With those remarks, I beg to reply.

Member for Lagdera, take your seat.

Hon. Members, we will go back to Order No. 7. We have in the House the Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports to respond to Questions as listed in the Order Paper. Cabinet Secretary, welcome to the House. Leader of the Majority Party, who are the owners of these Questions? Cabinet Secretary, there will be no individual Members asking the four listed Questions. I will invite you to respond to all the issues raised. Thereafter, I will invite Members to seek clarification or ask additional questions, if any. You may go ahead. Since this is your first appearance since your dismissal and reappointment, congratulations on behalf of the House. We hope that you will continue, like you did in the last term, co-operating with the House and appearing whenever you are requested or summoned to appear. You are one of the Cabinet Secretaries who never failed to appear when you were called to appear before this House. Go ahead. The Cabinet Secretary was asked to respond to the following Questions: (a) State of preparedness of key sporting facilities to host international sports events— (i) The state of preparedness of the country in terms of infrastructure facilities and other logistics to successfully host international sporting events and, more specifically, the planned hosting of the Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) and the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON); (ii) The current condition of key sports facilities in the country including their maintenance, modernisation and suitability for hosting international events; (iii) Specific measures or strategies that have been put in place by the Ministry to accelerate the completion of the stalled or incomplete stadia across the country. (b) Facilitation of national sports teams: The measures in place to ensure timely preparation, coordination, management and facilitation of teams to represent the country in various disciplines. (c) Mandate of the Kenya Academy of Sports— The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

(i) The milestones made by the Kenya Academy of Sports in development of grassroots talent, the challenges faced and measures taken to address those challenges; (ii) An outline on the number of academies that have been set up nationwide, including details of their effectiveness at the grassroots level and whether there are strategies in place to ensure their continuity. (d) Any other related matters that Members may raise.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for the invitation. I also appreciate you for congratulating me. I thank the House for approving my appointment, this being my first time to come into this Chamber since my re-appointment. It is always exciting to be here. It is a great privilege, knowing that many Kenyans would have had an opportunity to appear before such an august House. I was asked four questions as you have mentioned. For the purpose of The Hansard, I will restate them and then respond. The first question was to apprise the state of the preparedness of the country in terms of infrastructure facilities and other logistics to successfully host international sports events and, more specifically, the planned hosting of CHAN and AFCON. By way of introduction, the Ministry, through Sports Kenya, embarked on a number of sports infrastructure projects during the Second, Third and Fourth Medium-Term Plans of 2013-2017, 2018-2022 and 2022-2027, respectively. We are aligned with the Kenya Vision 2030 and the Kenya Kwanza Government Manifesto. Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have jointly secured hosting rights for AFCON 2027 and CHAN 2025, which is the Total Energies Africa Nations Championship, leading to targeted upgrading of some facilities in compliance with the requirements of the championship. The bid was awarded to the three countries by the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on 27th September 2023. The Cabinet approved the hosting of the sports event on 3rd October 2023. On 15th September 2024, I was privileged to host the CAF President, who visited the country to assess Kenya’s preparedness to host CHAN 2025 and AFCON 2027. I am glad to inform you that the CAF President expressed satisfaction with the progress we have made thus far. On the sports infrastructure development, the Ministry developed a master plan and categorised the infrastructure development in the country into several categories. First, is that international stadia shall be stadia that have category 4 status, which is over 30,000 seating capacity. There shall also be national stadia, Category 3A, which shall have 15,000 to 30,000 seating capacity. There are also regional or county stadia with 10,000 to 15,000 seating capacity. We will also have community grounds in Category A with 5,000 to 10,000 seating capacity. There are also smaller community grounds with a seating capacity of below 5,000 people. Currently, development and refurbishment of those projects have been prioritised into categories as follows: The African Cup of Nations (AFCON) projects, the ongoing projects and future planned projects. In so far as the preparation of AFCON and Total Energies African Nations Championship (CHAN) is concerned, there are three very important pieces of infrastructure. Firstly, there is a new stadium that is being constructed at Jamhuri, along Ngong Road in Nairobi, which is Talanta Sports City. That stadium shall have a seating capacity of 60,000 people. It is expected to be complete by December 2025. The stadium will have three training grounds within the Talanta Sports City. Two, will have a running track and one football pitch which shall be shared with rugby. As a result of that construction, the Nyayo National Stadium shall be categorised as a training ground for the purpose of AFCON. The Talanta Sports City Stadium will be the main one and the training ground will be at the Nyayo National Stadium. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

This is a new project. Ground-breaking was done on 31st March this year. The progress so far is 23 per cent. The works are ongoing. We are delivering this together with the Ministry of Defence, which is the contracted agency of the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports. The other stadium is the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani. It is being renovated to have 55,000-seater capacity. The expected date of completion is December this year. The main works that are being done to refurbish the stadium is the installation of a new roof which will have a greater enclosure of the stadium, 30 metres around the stadium. There is also installation of seats, upgrading of flood lighting to 3,000 Lux, expansion of the Very Important Person (VIP) pavilion, refurbishment of the football pitch, installation of access controls, audio-visual systems, sound, Video Assistant Referee (VAR) and Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) in the stadium. Further, there will be upgrading of the changing rooms, doping control and medical rooms, and upgrading of the press and media centre. The works are currently ongoing. I have gone there twice to supervise the progress. The roof was being fabricated off- site, but it has now been delivered. It is on its way to Kasarani to be delivered and installed. This is urgent because that is the stadium that we shall use for CHAN in February 2025. On the training grounds related to Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, we have two pitches at the Kenya Academy of Sports Ground. We also intend to eventually make Kirigiti Stadium a training ground for purposes of the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, AFCON hosting in 2027. All those training grounds have been handed over to the contractor. He is currently mobilising for that purpose. As I said earlier, the works will be completed by December this year. The third facility, for purposes of AFCON, is the Kipchoge Keino Stadium which has a 15,000-seater capacity. The expected completion date is December 2025. There was a slow process of contracting, but we believe the contractor can put more effort to make sure that it is constructed to international capacity by December 2025. The main works are roofing, installation of Very Important Person (VVIP) and VIP seats, upgrading of floodlighting to 3,000 Lux, refurbishment of the football pitch, installation of access control audio-visual systems, sound, VAR, CCTV, and upgrading of changing rooms, doping control and medical rooms. The project was commissioned and the site handed over in August this year. The contractor is currently on site and ready to continue with the work. We are also upgrading the press conference and media centre, perimeter wall and replacement of the tartan track to make it international. As part of the training grounds for the Kipchoge Keino Stadium, we shall commission works in Kapsabet Stadium, Eldoret National Polytechnic Grounds and 64 Stadium, two of which are in Uasin Gishu County and the others in Nandi County. For part of CHAN projects, after Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania bid for CHAN, the Ministry established and identified the following stadia to host CHAN: Masinde Muliro Kanduyi Stadium, Bukhungu Stadium and Nyayo National Stadium. However, when the Confederation of African Football (CAF) inspectors visited the above facilities, they recommended that only Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani and the Nyayo National Stadium shall be eligible to host those very important tournaments. Therefore, as far as Nyayo National Stadium is concerned, it will have 18,000 seating capacity. Initially, we were told to change the football pitch, but we had good consultations and agreement that the grass which is there is sufficient for CHAN preparations. This is to ensure that we do not delay the works towards CHAN. Therefore, some work will go to roofing, installations of VVIP seats, upgrading of floodlighting to 3,000 Lux, installation of access control, visual systems, sound, VAR and CCTV, and upgrading of changing rooms, doping control and medical rooms. Part of those works have already been done. The upgrading of press conference and media centre is also done. We will also upgrade the perimeter wall and replace the tartan track. As part of the Nyayo National Stadium being the main one, the Police SACCO Stadium and Ulinzi The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Stadium shall be the training facility. The works will be done to make sure that they are up to standard as training facilities. The second part of this Question focuses on the condition of the key sports facilities in the country, including the maintenance, modernisation and sustainability of hosting international events. I will give a breakdown of the current conditions of key sports facilities in the country. We have about 12 stadia that had been promised from the time the Jubilee Government administration came to office in 2013. Some of them have become monuments of shame across the country. That is because they are promises that are yet to be kept. Some of those stadia include: Kinoru Stadium in Meru County, Kirubia Stadium in Tharaka-Nithi County, Marsabit Stadium in Marsabit County, Kamariny Stadium in Elgeyo Marakwet County, Ruring’u Stadium in Nyeri County, Wote Stadium in Makueni County, Karatu Stadium in Kiambu County, Bukhungu Stadium in Kakamega County, Masinde Muliro Kanduyi Stadium in Bungoma County, Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu County, Jomo Kenyatta Stadium in Kisumu County and Wang’uru Stadium in Kirinyaga County. Hon. Speaker, I will start with Kinoru Stadium in Meru County. Its overall completion is 99 per cent. It is a 15,000-seater stadium. It has Fédération Internationale de FootballAssociation (FIFA) standard football pitch, a borehole and associated water storage facilities, generator, electrical and mechanical works and sub-base for 8-lane track. We have a VIP lounge, athletes changing rooms and CCTV installation. Hon. Speaker, it is 99 per cent done, but there are concerns over the 1 per cent that needs to be completed in order for the stadium to be used, as it ought to be ready for the national, Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and other athletics events. The overall completion of Kirubia Stadium project is 99 per cent. It is a 2,000-seater pavilion, has a FIFA standard football field, a borehole and associated water storage, electrical and mechanical works and six-lane tracks with field event facilities. The project is practically complete. However, there is need to expand the VIP holding rooms and presidential dais, which was not in the original specifications. Further, we have asked Sports Kenya to collaborate with Kenya School of TVET (KSTVET) to review the design, bill of quantities and advice on the budget requirement to facilitate the completion of the remaining part of the stadium. The Marsabit Stadium in Marsabit County is estimated to be 85 per cent complete. It is a 15,000-seater stadium for full design scope. Its current scope is at 6,000-seater, a FIFA standard football field, boundary wall with gates, a borehole and associated water storage facilities, car park area, electrical works, eight-lane track with field event facilities. The scope for Sports Kenya National Government was completed on 30th May 2022, save for the pitch which was varied from natural grass to synthetic turf. Construction of the VIP pavilion by the county government stalled with glaring structural integrity shortfalls. The State Department of Roads conducted an integrity test and submitted a report. I directed Sports Kenya to work with KSTVET to review the recommendation and advice on cost for re-advertisement of the works that are remaining, which will be undertaken by Sports Kenya to complete and retrofit areas that were left out. Kamariny Stadium in Elgeyo-Marakwet County is the most talked about project and a source of embarrassment when it comes to sports stadia. The initial completion rate was 30 per cent. It shall be a 15,000-seater stadium for full design scope, with FIFA standard football field, a borehole and associated water storage facility and electrical and mechanical works. We intend to construct an eight-lane track with field event facilities. This was identified to be an important facility for sports training. For the benefit of this House, Iten hosts 3,000 athletes in the country and it is an extremely important stadium to that effect. The project contract was terminated. The scope has The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

then been integrated to the prototype designs that have been prepared by KSTVET. The project is to be re-advertised based on those prototype provisions that have been given. Under the new design, it will have a 100-bed capacity hostel for athletes training. Ruring’u International Stadium in Nyeri County has an overall completion status of 75 per cent. Initially, it was to have a 2,000-seater pavilion, which was the objective then, a FIFA standard football field, a borehole and associated water storage facilities, electrical and mechanical works, eight-lane track with field events capacity and a VIP lift. The same contractor, as the one of Kamariny Stadium in Elgeyo-Marakwet County, was also terminated. The scope has been integrated in the prototype designs developed by KSTVET. The project will be re-advertised afresh. Using the new designs, our objective is to deliver, at least, a 10,000-seater capacity stadium. The overall completion status of Wote Stadium is 65 per cent of the following scope of works: 1,500-seater pavilion, eight-lane track with field events facilities, a FIFA standard football field, a boundary wall with gates, a borehole and associated water storage facilities. The original site was changed by the county government thus causing the delay in the commencement of the work. The new site had topographical and geological challenges thus necessitating variations to stabilise the ground on the western side of the field. We have asked Sports Kenya to integrate to the prototype design developed by KSTVET, so that we can deliver the same. The overall completion status of Karatu Stadium in Kiambu County is now 90 per cent. As a matter of fact, I will be visiting the stadium on Friday. This is because our intention is to take over the stadium by 30th October 2024. The stadium is a 1,500-seater pavilion, a FIFA standard football field, a borehole and associated water storage facilities, electrical and mechanical works and six-lane track with field events facilities. Regarding the construction of the Masinde Muliro Kanduyi Stadium, it consists of construction of a 10,000-seater terraces, associated mechanical and electrical works and civil works, roofing and installation of seats. This project is so far 90 per cent complete with roof works construction ongoing and expected to be complete by December 2024. We expect to complete Phase 2 of the roofing scope on 24th October 2024. The Bukhungu Stadium in Kakamega County is under construction of the southern terrace, changing of rooms and roofing. Construction of the stadium works started in March 2023 and the progress is only 20 per cent. The contract is signed and work is ongoing. Our duty is to make sure that we push for faster completion of the project. The tenth stadium is the Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu County. I visited the stadium last week and gave firm instructions that it must be completed and handed over by the end of next month. Had we completed and finished that stadium, we would not be struggling at the moment to see where we will host the CHAN. We had a deadline of end of this year, but I am trying my best to make sure that we are done with the stadium by end of October. The Jomo Kenyatta Stadium in Kisumu County was completed and handed over to the County Government of Kisumu. Wang’uru Stadium in Kirinyaga County was also completed. What is remaining is the handing over ceremony to the county government. And not just a ceremony, but with also an agreement on how maintenance will be done by the county government with a properly signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The Ministry is consulting with the county governments through the Council of Governors on the management framework upon handing over the stadia to respective counties. The third part of the question is the specific measures or strategies that have been put in place by the Ministry to accelerate the completion of stalled or incomplete stadia across the country. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

The Ministry, through collaboration with KSTVET, has developed a prototype design and bills of quantities for different categories of stadia as I read earlier. They are 20,000, 15,000, 10,000 and up to 5,000-seater. We are reviewing the designs and bill of quantities for completion of all stalled and incomplete stadia as I read earlier. I have given my team two weeks, then we review and start processes of paying whatever is pending in order to make sure that we complete the pending stadiums. We do not want another round of lamentations as to why we have stalled projects. The Ministry has also rationalised the budget requirement to ensure adequate funds for completion of all the ongoing projects. It has further continued to engage with the National Treasury to prioritise infrastructure development. We request the National Assembly to support the construction of infrastructure through budgetary allocation for adequate financing mechanism. As we speak, we do not have a single allocation from the budget, for the construction of any stadium. I, therefore, request this House, as we look at many other priorities in the country, let sports facilities become part of your priority. This is geared for timely realisation of the CHAN and the Africa Cup of Nations. We are exploring ways of collaborating with the private sector to enable them construct a modern sports infrastructure. The ongoing review of the sports policy will provide clarity on this matter. We are reviewing the policy to know how best the private sector can do the stadium. As a matter of fact, the Government should not be owning stadia. That is my personal position. All over the world, governments do not own stadia. It costs a lot of money to the taxpayer with little return. If it was owned by the private sector, it would commercialise it and would be available for sports activities. In a country like the United Kingdom (UK), the only stadium that is owned by the Government is the Wembley Stadium. The rest is owned by the private companies and they are always available for sporting activities. This is the way to go. Public- Private Partnership (PPP) and other modalities must be applied to make sure that those stadia are well maintained so that we do not, after every 10 years, put billions of monies to refurbish facilities that should be income generating.

Hon. Speaker, the second last part of the Question was how we facilitate measures that we put in place to ensure timely preparation, coordination, management and facilitation of teams to represent the country in various disciplines. The Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports has a key responsibility of supporting teams that are representing Kenya in international competition in various disciplines. The Ministry usually enters the teams in international competitions that are held outside the country, and also while hosting competitions here. The Ministry has put in place the following measures to ensure that our teams are well prepared, managed and coordinated during those games:

The Ministry has put in place a funding request mechanism which has been shared with the sports federations. Federations submit the requirements for next financial year by 31st December of every year, which is six months before the start of the financial year. The Ministry compiles an annual work plan which captures the events as per the Ministry priorities for the following year, each financial year. Federations thereafter submit an itemised budget to the Department of Sports for their respective activity competitions two months before the start of the activities. The Department of Sports then evaluates and rationalises budgets and forwards the same to the Principal Secretary for approval. In the approvals, the Ministry ensures that the teams are provided for to attend local training camps for, at least, seven days to prepare adequately for the competition. For major events, the training is longer and may include training abroad to access stable favourable competition conditions just like the Olympics and the World Cup for our young girls.

The budget ensures that the teams are appropriately and well kitted for their respective competitions. The female teams are kitted to take care of their special needs and requirements and the teams of persons with disability is done the same way. On request, the teams are also The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

facilitated to acquire specialised equipment for training and competition in line with the respective sports. The players and officials are provided with local training allowances and foreign allowances during competition days to incentivise the players. The teams are equally provided with travel insurance and medical covers to take care of injuries during competitions and any further injuries that may go beyond the competition period.

The teams travelling outside the country are accompanied by the technical officers from the Ministry to ensure their safety, proper welfare and proper reporting and feedback for each event. For teams comprising of ladies and minors, the Ministry ensures that they are accompanied by chaperones and safeguarding officers to ensure athletes safety at all times. After the competition, the athletes who excel are rewarded with cash awards as provided for in the Cash Award Honors Scheme. This is meant to encourage and monetise their effort during competition.

In conclusion, the Ministry is committed to ensuring that our teams are well prepared and facilitated to participate in international competitions. Their good performance help to raise the profile of our country and that of the athletes. We shall continuously revise our support to the teams as and when the need arises to ensure that we meet the necessary standards for our team’s continued excellence in international competitions.

Hon. Speaker, the next part of the Question is the mandate of Kenya Academy of Sports. The Kenya Academy of Sports in line with the sports talent development has over the years undertaken various programmes and activities aimed at identifying and growing sports talents at the grassroots. They include: One, sports camp. The academy has so far provided training to 3,457 talented children and youth in different sports disciplines through sports camps in football, tennis, volleyball, basketball, rugby, hockey, swimming, deaf basketball, chess, netball, table tennis, among others. I have summarised in the table that I have attached. I do not need to read it again. Two, athletes’ scholarships. The academy awarded a scholarship to among others, Selfa Ojiambo, a talented but very needy and vulnerable girl who is 100-metre champion in primary school games. The academy admitted the girl at St. Catherine’s Nainga Girls and engaged her in training. In March 2023 as a result of the same, just as an example, Selfa won gold for Kenya in the 4x100 relay in under 18 girls in Dar-es-Salaam Tanzania. In April 2023, she was placed in the 4x400 relay team for Zambia where she was number three in the finals. This is just one example of some of the scholarships that have been given. Three, the academy facilitates training for athletes in various sports disciplines including football, basketball, volleyball, hockey and tennis. In collaborative training, the academy supports the sports organisations to organise sports tournaments like the Chess Tournament that was organised here in Nairobi with 500 chess players; Martial Arts Tournament in Meru where over 200 youth participated; Tong-II Moo-Do Kenya Tournament in Mombasa; Little League Baseball in Meru where 200 youths were involved in the games; the American Buffalo Baseball team who organised an American Independent Day Baseball Tournament in Kasarani; and Celebration of UNESCO International Day, among others. There are a number of activities. On the development of curriculum to guide training, the academy has already developed curriculum of six sports disciplines, among them, football, basketball, cricket, athletics, volleyball, golf and motorsport. There is mental skills training and psychosocial support for athletes when they are going for international events as listed. The Sports Talent Development and Training framework has been prepared by the academy and the objectives of that framework is to provide guidelines for selection and training of athletes and sports technical personnel, establish criteria for academy engagement and management of trainers, provide standards for establishment and The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

management of sports facility equipment and training materials, and provide the implementation of structured sport talent development and training at the academy.

Hon. Speaker, the academy also organises national sports talent camps and it has done a number of them from 2023, which has helped in identifying and nurturing sports talent, provide opportunity for scouting of talent for local and foreign clubs, promote positive specialisation integration and instil life skills and mentorship programme.

We also have the Talanta Hela Football Programme that was successfully organised last year and, hopefully, we will do the same this year. This is meant to nurture talent. The first one was focused on football. The idea was to prepare our team for Africa Cup of Nations by 2027. It gives the opportunity to young people to expose their talents in preparations for that tournament. The coaches and technical staff are able to scout for the best talent. As a result of the same, we got some of the girls who are now going to the World Cup in the Dominican Republic.

Those achievements notwithstanding, the Academy is yet to realise full potential because it is hindered by various factors. I want to challenge this House to look at what exactly is given to the Academy and what they expect. Last year, the Academy requested Ksh530 million for 2023/2024 and they were given Ksh280 million. This financial year, the Academy requested Ksh600 million and they were given zero shillings. There is a pattern that I have witnessed is developing. Now that I am serving in the second ministry, I can do proper comparison. You will find that in this Ministry, largely all the agencies are ignored. Related to this, is that the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) which deals with anti-doping, was given Ksh20 million and yet it had requested for Ksh300 million. This led to protests by ADAK. I want to implore upon this House, to put money where our loudest mouth is. In the sense that, as a country, we like sports, cheering our athletes and footballers. Yet, as the Legislature, we give zero money to our athletes and sports people. This should prick our conscience and make us rethink how we handle sports and sports facilities.

No wonder, the potential of sports in this country has never been realised as it should. You cannot reap where you do not sow. With zero money allocated to the Kenya Academy of Sports, we get zero scholarships. That is why it is reporting one scholarship in a big way. We can do more with proper resources. I do not want to mention what the State departments get, both the State Department for Youth Affairs and Creative Economy and the State Department for Sports, because it is laughable. The Academy has 36 staff against an establishment of 155 staff.

There is also lack of training facilities. We only focus on one facility at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani. We need more training facilities so that the Academy can support sports. It has also developed a digital talent hub for online talent identification. If you establish or identify talent anywhere in the country, it is sent to that digital hub. We have audited and realised it is inadequate because it is using very basic technology. A proper talent search technology uses artificial intelligence, where information is sent to the site and it automatically identifies the quality and talents of students. If you look at Premier League, for those who follow football, you will realise the teams are now using modern technology. People send skills from all over the world and it helps in talent search and identification of talented sports people.

As I conclude, the Kenya Academy of Sports is yet to establish sports training academies across the country. The question on how many talent academies we have across the country, the Kenya Academy of Sports is yet to establish sports training academies across the country due to inadequate resources. The construction of the Headquarters at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, is still ongoing. There are advanced plans to establish 30 sports training academies across the country during the current financial year. We have a plan for the next three years. We will establish 90 academies in the next year, 90 in the Financial Year The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

2026/2027 and in the Financial Year 2027/2028, we should reach a total of 290 academies. That is one academy per constituency.

The Academy endeavours to continue fulfilling its mandate of sports talent identification development, capacity building of sports technical personnel and conducting sports research. This will be achieved through athlete’s identification, nurturing and development of programmes, conducting coaching and refereeing courses, provisions of sports training equipment to athletes and the teams across the grassroots. To ensure the continuity of that programme, the Academy will strive to work with stakeholders, including the Ministry of Education, county governments, sports federations, Kenya primary schools and secondary schools’ associations in the development of sports talent.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. Hon. Members, you have heard a very clear and elaborate explanation from him on the issues at hand. Next is Hon. Caroli Omondi. Cabinet Secretary, take the first five and then you respond.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I want to warmly welcome the good Cabinet Secretary back to the House and the Cabinet. I have a follow-up question. I want to hear from him regarding the sports academies that have been established by the Kenya Academy of Sports.

As he has said, this is the only institution we have that offers camps, scholarships, training to the technical people, administrators, sportsmen and assists various groups to organise tournaments. As he has rightly pointed out, the Departmental Committee on Sports and Culture was concerned because the Kenya Academy of Sports received zero allocation this Financial Year against our recommendations. The ADAK, which is the vanguard of the integrity of our athleticism as a country, also got 20 per cent, barely enough to cover their administration costs.

I would like to hear from the Cabinet Secretary whether there are proposals to wind up those two institutions. We are very worried because it seems like there is a clear plan to close the Kenya Academy of Sports as well as to undermine the operations of ADAK. We want him to assure this House that there are no such plans. He should also elaborate to this House what plans he has of ring-fencing the proceeds of the Sports Fund which supports those two institutions, in the Supplementary Budget which will be coming to this House in October.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Leader of the Majority Party.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Let me also commend the Cabinet Secretary for those very elaborate answers. I can see you have completed a number of stadia and handed them over to the county government like Wang’uru Stadium in Kirinyaga and Jomo Kenyatta Stadium in Kisumu County. You have said that you will hand over Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu County at the end of October. Wang’uru Stadium is awaiting the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) so that you can hand over. My concern is what happens after you have handed over those stadia to the county governments.

The Government of Kenya has invested billions in those stadia like Kirigiti Stadium. What measures is your Ministry taking to ensure that those stadia are not ran down because of poor management by the county governments? I do not know whether the MOUs you are entering into with counties include an oversight mechanism by the Ministry, so as to ensure that you maintain a certain standard in our regional and international stadia. For instance, Kirigiti Stadium can be used for some of the international games under the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and the African Nations Championship (CHAN).

If we leave them to our county governments, they will be run down in a year or two. They will look like community grounds with no seats, the football pitch not usable and goalposts looted and sold to scrap metal dealers. I want to hear what measures you have put in The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

place to ensure that there are penalties to county governments. Also, a mechanism where you can periodically check the status of each stadium that has been developed by the national Government to ensure that the standards are maintained.

For any county government that is unable to maintain them to the required standards, then you must have a recourse measure to ensure that, that stadium is reverted back to the national Government. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Mayaka.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also want to thank the Cabinet Secretary for giving us elaborate responses. First, I have a follow-up question on the preparation for our national teams. The other day, the Beach Kabaddi Team was going to the World Cup and their travel plans were really delayed. One complaint they had is that the day they were traveling for the World Cup is the day it was beginning. Why were they not given priority?

Secondly, the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) elections are very close to the CHAN Championship. I want to know with that very close proximity, are we ready to have the elections and also ensure that CHAN is properly handled?

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Zamzam.

Ahsante sana Mhe. Spika. Swali langu kwa Waziri ni hili. Tunajua Football Kenya Federation (FKF) watapiga kura zao hivi karibuni. Nakuuliza watawezaje kupiga kura bila kuwa na Kamati ya kushughulikia manung’uniko ( Appeals committee) ? Kwa nini ile bodi ya uchaguzi ipo katika himaya ya wanaowania? Ni kama vile Rais anataka kura, lakini ile komisheni ya kusimamia kura iko ndani ya ikulu. Utakuwaje uchaguzi wa haki? Kisha nauliza, ni kanuni zipi umeweka kuhakikisha kuwa vile vipimo vya FIFA vimefuatwa? La mwisho, huko mashinani, watoto wamekuwa wakicheza mpira, lakini wanachangiwa kama maskini. Watoto wanatoka Mombasa wakitaka kuja Nairobi kwenye mashindano, wanachangiwa mpaka sehemu ya kulala. Inakuwa shida mpaka wanalala kwenye maveranda. Nauliza, kama tunakuza talanta, mbona tusiweke pesa huku chini? Hao watoto wakitoka, watoke na nguvu wakijua tunaelekea sehemu ambayo ni nzuri. Ahsante sana.

Hon. Dida Raso.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. My question is on the issue of unfinished stadiums like Marsabit and the others that you have indicated, which have taken an inordinately long time - six to seven years. Once you close out those facilities, the people who would have used those stadiums do not even have space to play football or any other sport. In the realm of time, would you have a time frame when we will be able to finish those works? The other issue is that of regional centers of excellence. You are biting more than you can chew because you have too many ongoing projects and yet, you could focus on having something in Isiolo for Upper Eastern, for example. For north eastern, you can have something in Garissa so that, with the few shillings that are available to you, you can focus on and finish a project. Let us hear your comments, Mr. Waziri. Thank you.

Let him respond to those five, and then we will take another round.

It is not if; it is when. They are never maintained and so, there is no if.

Hon. Speaker, let me give the counties the benefit of doubt, and I say this because so far, Homa Bay County is doing very well with their stadium which they built themselves. It is fairly well maintained. The Hon. Deputy Speaker is saying it is because of the Governor, who is a woman. I do not think that is the only reason. The thing I would like to say is that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) we are going to sign - and that is why Wang’uru has not been handed over - is because that Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) must capture all those issues. The fear that you develop a national Government facility and hand it over to the county, then sometimes another county government or a petty Governor will come in. After that, when the national Government, its leadership, Members of Parliament or whoever else wants to have a function there, then they say it cannot be approved because they have political differences with Member of Parliament X or Y. So, that Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) will have to provide all those mechanisms of how those relationships will be established considering the investment has been done by the national Government. That is the most important thing we are going to have with that MOU. As I said, that is why to progressively have those stadia owned by private entities so that they do not have consideration of those type of issues.

Hon. Mayaka asked something about the team that was stuck and protested in our offices and at the airport. We realised that the team wanted to travel six days before the tournament, and there was nothing to do to prepare for Kabaddi when you are competing. So, we requested that they travel, at least, two days before to have time to recover and then play so that we could save on costs. We communicated that to their federations, and they were well aware. However, you know, sometimes, when people want just to raise their voice a little bit, they do certain things that may not be desirable. The federation said that they did not instruct their players to do what they did, and we thought that was an act of indiscipline. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Nevertheless, we will continue supporting them and they are now out of the country participating in the tournament. Hon. Zamzam has talked about the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) elections. When we got to the office, one of the things I promised during the vetting here in this House was that I was going to do everything possible to make sure that they had elections in the first place.

So, I am happy we have an election day. We now have the elections board, which is part of the regulations of the FKF law. I am going to have a meeting with the Board to see if we can lend them neutral Government facilities to operate their elections from and whether we can also find ways of supporting them technically with the Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), so that the elections are as transparent as possible. That is the conversation we are having. The stakeholders are busy now. The candidates are busy campaigning. We desire to deliver credible elections. We know that it is not the Government per se that is in charge of the elections. However, our oversight responsibility and the Office of the Registrar is working very hard to make sure that, that independence is achieved. We really want a properly working FKF that has the credibility and the confidence of the stakeholders so that football can reach the stature that the people of Kenya want it to reach. I promise that I will make sure that we deal with that. On the grassroots football support, again, apart from the Kenya Academy of Sports not having resources to deal with those academies in different places, sports are a private undertaking. Let us first make that clear. Sports are a private venture. They are like a business. We look at sports from a business perspective. Unless you are competing on behalf of your country, sports are a private business. We must see it as a business. We want to support sports in the same way that we support other businesses like micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as a country. That is why we must have multiple ways of achieving success in sports. The best grassroots entities for developing sports are schools. We want to sit down as a Ministry to make sure that schools provide opportunities for nurturing talent. Club football should be outrightly private. Clubs should raise resources, run their football programmes, generate funding and advertise their talent. When it comes to nurturing talent, if we focus on schools alone, no part of Kenya will be left out. However, if we only focus on building training grounds, very few facilities can be constructed in the country. Recently, when the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) was reviewing our country's performance during the Paris Olympics, I was shown statistics that universities in the United States of America contributed 3,000 athletes who competed in the Olympics. In contrast, our universities in Kenya did not contribute even one athlete. Our primary school and secondary school sports programmes are okay. We support those programmes through sports funding, and they produce the best sportspeople. After high school, very few athletes compete in universities. In fact, the only sport that has managed to have that caliber of athletes is rugby. We do not have proper programmes in our colleges and universities for other sports such as football and athletics. I promised that we would strengthen education through our sports policy. In other countries, the department of sports is called the ministry of education and sports because linking them together makes it possible for us to nurture talent. We need to work with schools for equality and equity. The other question raised by Hon. Raso is on being strategic. That is why we are only constructing one stadium per region. You are right that there is no single stadium in the entire north eastern region. We will use the principle of affirmative action to construct one in that region. The talent is there. We will ensure that every region is taken care of before we can move to counties. We will leave the county governments and the private sector to construct the rest of the stadia. The national Government should only maintain two or three stadia. The rest should either be run by the counties, the private sector or individual clubs. If we had thriving The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

clubs like Gor Mahia, AFC Leopards, Ulinzi Stars and Shabana, they would buy those stadia from the national Government, assume ownership and use them for sports. That is why it is important to develop the sport itself. It can then facilitate the infrastructure that we need. There was an inordinate delay in the construction of the Marsabit Stadium. I already captured that in my Report. The delay also affected Kinoru and Kamariny stadia, among others. But as I promised, by the time I come back here to speak about sports and sports infrastructure, the pending infrastructure would either have been commissioned to start for those which have not started, like Kamariny Stadium, or would be completed and handed over, like Marsabit Stadium. Currently, our officers are on their way to Marsabit to assess how much it will cost to complete the Marsabit Stadium. There was also the issue of technical advice from Sports Kenya regarding the pitches. Can grass grow in that area, or will we use astroturf? I totally agree with the Member that we should not spread ourselves too thin when it comes to the infrastructure.

Hon. K.J.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also want to thank Waziri Onesmus Kipchumba Murkomen for appearing here and also fielding these questions. My questions are very direct. First, what plans does the Ministry have for the people of Ng’ando Ward in Nairobi County, which does not have a single public amenity? The only public amenity is Lenana School. The people of Ng’ando Ward have traditionally been crossing Ngong Road to play in the Posta Grounds. The new stadium is being built on the Posta Grounds. Two tragedies are occasioned on our people. First, the workforce is imported from elsewhere. The people of Ng’ando Ward are just watching as those projects are ongoing. What plans does the Ministry have to include our people so that they can also serve their community during the construction of that stadium? Ng’ando Ward is only now getting its first public primary school. All the schools in that Ward use the Posta Grounds as their playing field. We do not have any fields in all of Ng’ando Ward, and they are building a stadium there. What plans does the Ministry have for those tens of thousands of children who have traditionally been playing in that field? The second question is a quick one. Is the Ministry aware that there are office bearers of FKF who are insisting that they shall contest in the elections beyond their constitutional tenures, arguing that their tenures were interrupted by the COVID-19 Pandemic? Hon. Speaker, you were a Senator, and your tenure must have been interrupted. So was mine, and so was the tenure of His Excellency President Emeritus Uhuru Kenyatta, but he did not insist that he shall go beyond his constitutional tenure just because it was interrupted by the COVID-19 Pandemic. I would like to know what the Ministry is doing about that because we would not want the Ministry to fall captive to federations just like previous ministries have been. Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Millie.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker and

Cabinet Secretary. I heard the CS speaking very well about nurturing talents. As a Member of Parliament for Suba North and as a child rights advocate, I want to raise the case of Clare Mary, who was identified and spent four months training for the Olympics. She is a Form IV student. After she was identified, she was dropped from the team when they were just about to leave for Paris, and new people were picked for the team. As a child rights advocate, you may have permanently destroyed somebody's life while saying that you are trying to nurture sports. Is it not self-defeating to wonder why only rugby is doing well? We are identifying young people and destroying their futures by creating and dashing their hopes. You mentioned that you would include the girls who were left out. Will she be included even as a spectator? What do you have for her future? The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Finally, are you still building a sports academy in Suba North?

Member for Tetu.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. First of all, I want to congratulate the CS for assuming his new role in the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports. I applaud his intention to complete all our incomplete stadiums. If I heard it right, he mentioned that Ruring’u Stadium, the only stadium of meaningful stature in Nyeri, is 75 per cent complete. I do not know whether the CS has been misled or if he chose to mislead the House because the stadium is very close to a forest. The construction of that stadium started in 2017 and, to the best of my knowledge - and I have consulted some of my colleagues in Nyeri on the phone - it is nothing more than 25 per cent complete. I want the CS to lead the relevant committee of the House to go to Ruring’u and ascertain whether the statement he has made in this House is correct. If not, he would rather withdraw and say he does not have the facts. This is because Ruring’u Stadium is not where he has said. A total of Ksh260 million has been sunk there. The tartan that was put seven years ago is completely worn out. The artificial turf is completely worn out. The VIP dais and the rest are nothing more than 20 per cent complete. Waziri, I think you have misled this House. You probably need to correct yourself. Thank you.

Hon. Basil.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me the opportunity. I want to thank the Cabinet Secretary for the very comprehensive response to so many questions. As a Member of the Departmental Committee on Sports and Culture, what measures have you put in place to manage doping and age cheating? Two, issues of corruption have dominated the Ministry. What are you going to do to manage corruption and to ensure we have progression?

How do you manage corruption?

To eradicate.

Eradicate or manage?

You do not manage corruption but eradicate.

You asked him how he would manage corruption.

No.

Cabinet Secretary, do you have the talent to manage corruption?

That question is tied to the stalled projects. We have so many stalled projects, and the main issue is corruption. Thank you.

Hon. Milemba.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Waziri is the most valuable player on the football field for Bunge FC as a striker. Congratulations! Question number one, Waziri, you mentioned several stadiums that you are developing around the country, and here in the City. But one point stands out glaring! You are forgetting the mother stadiums of this country, and you have said nothing about them. I will give you two examples. You said that Wembley Stadium has a historical background that is similar to that of City Stadium. I do not know where you put City Stadium, where we grew up, and which developed the talents from Eastlands and all the greatest players. You have also forgotten Bukhungu Stadium, which you have indicated is being built. But when I pass there, nothing is going on and yet, those were the original developers of talent. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

We had Mr. Chris Makhoha, of whom I was a beneficiary while in Kakamega. Where have you placed them? Two, what plans are underway to build the stadium you promised us in Vihiga? Vihiga County does not have a stadium. There was a suggestion for Kidundu and Mumboha, but you have mentioned nothing about it. Lastly, many Kenyans won gold medals during the Olympics. However, we later realised that the athletes who bore names like Keter or Kipngetich were of different nationalities. Some were Canadians. Why are the best athletes running for other countries and not Kenya? Thank you.

Member for Kamukunji.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I just wanted to tell the Cabinet Secretary Hon. Murkomen that a very…

Why are you not standing?

I have a broken leg. Is that all right?

Go ahead. I was wondering because I have previously seen you stand up while contributing. I know your disability.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. First of all, I wanted to tell the Cabinet Secretary that a very important and large local soccer tournament, the Kamukunji Peace Tournament, 2024, is taking place at the moment and is bringing in 48 teams across the five wards. But the conditions in which they play are not good. Historically, Kamukunji is one of the constituencies that has produced some of the best football talents in this country. Is there any contribution that your Ministry could make to the large number of urban youths in our capital City of five million people? What plans does your Ministry have in terms of enhancing, nurturing, promoting and building that great talent within our youth and our communities? The second element is also whether you could come out as you do with other sports. For example, I have seen you are a very enthusiastic marathoner. One of these days, you should come and see some of our youth playing out in the field so that they can see that there is a commitment to promote and encourage them in sports.

Let us take those seven questions, and then you answer. Members hold your horses. We will do another round of questions. Hon. Lelmengit.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. First, I would like to thank the Cabinet Secretary for answering and elaborating on some of the issues that have been raised. I know he has mentioned the issue of incomplete stadiums, but I want to ask him about the issue of an advert for the construction of Kapsabet Stadium. The advert ran on 26th October last year. However, we are still waiting for the tender processes, valuation and whatever else is required to be done. To date, I do not know what happened in- between. I know the project was for the Financial Year 2023/2024. I presume that the funds were available then. Secondly, recently, we have had several suicidal cases among young athletes, particularly in Nandi County. Late last year and early this year, we have lost a number of them through suicide. Is there a plan for the Government or the Cabinet Secretary to set up psychosocial support desks, probably in every county, so that those people can get some advice whenever they have problems, guidance and such kinds of issues? Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Cabinet Secretary, you can answer those seven, and then we will pick another round. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Let me start with Hon. KJ. It is true that the Talanta Stadium facility is being developed into an international stadium. It was a playing ground for your constituents but unofficially. Let me start from there. The land was still allocated to an institution. Anything else would have been built there. The good news is that your ward would probably host one of the best stadiums on the continent.

It is a neighbouring ward.

Okay. You are invading another ward, which is even worse!

But, at least, you will be neighbouring a very important facility that would bring business to your neighbourhood. Secondly, outside the main stadium, there are three training pitches. Two will have running tracks, while the other will be purely a football pitch. Again, in terms of business and employment, it will benefit the people who live in the neighbourhood. We also believe that the facilities, including the infrastructure, will be improved, which will touch on your ward up to Lenana Ward and the Kibra Ward. Therefore, the plan is to…

That is what I was coming to. Maybe, the plan is to say that with Sports Kenya, how can those training pitches be accessed by children and even players who are at the bottom of the pyramid? They cannot pay a higher fee. We should work out that plan as we develop that facility. I am not aware in so far as the question of employees not coming from your ward. I suspect there may be some because there are 2,000 in number. This is a huge figure and, at their optimum, they will have 3,000 people working day and night. I do not suspect that possibly with the minimum skills to work there, people will miss from your ward. But with the remaining 1,000 number of job opportunities, we will tell the contractor to ensure people around are considered. That is the case for every Government project, including the housing project. I hope that can be followed through. Coming from your presentation here, we can speak to the contractor to help you put up a sports academy within the neighbourhood of Lenana Primary School, the new school you have built, so that by extending a facility to that very important school, it can also serve as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). I undertake that endeavour, not because you are my friend, but because it is the right thing to do. Hon. K.J. also raised the question of Football Kenya Federation (FKF) elections and the eligibility of those who have held office for more than two terms. A letter from the Registrar went out expressly to FKF stating that no one will run for the same office for more than two terms as per the Sports Act. That is very clear. If the FKF officials who are holding office now want to run for office, then they may want to run for different offices other than what they have served for more than two terms, so that we can be within our legal standards. Hon. Millie Odhiambo…

Cabinet Secretary, can you give an assurance to the country that you are going to sort out our football? We were a better footballing nation 20 years ago than we are today, because of sheer mismanagement of football in the country.

(Hon. Kipchumba Murkomen)

When we were vetting you, you gave us that assurance. Can you assure this House and the country that you are going to sort out the mess in football and take Kenya back to its level as a footballing nation?

(Hon. Kipchumba Murkomen)

Cabinet Secretary, the revelation by Yavi on why she ended up running for another sovereign country is something you must address. We have no issues with those who go voluntarily to take up the citizenship of another country.

(Hon. Kipchumba Murkomen)

Members, we can take one last round. Let me see those who are interested in asking questions.

We can take all of you, provided you ask only one question. If you ask more than one, I will switch off the microphone. Hon. Maungu.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I seek your indulgence! I had planned to ask two questions.

Just ask one.

Hon. Speaker, I would wish to ask a question on the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund. Last year, one of our great teams in Vihiga County, Luanda Constituency, known as Luanda Villa, participated in the Division 1 League and emerged tops. Your immediate former colleague pronounced himself that Luanda Villa was to get Ksh500,000 from the Fund, which was to be given to all the players. That money has not reached the club. Those are young people who felt motivated that by winning the trophy, that money would go a long way in supporting their daily activities. When will Luanda Villa, which is our pride, get the reward they were promised?

Hon. Mutuse.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. In the interest of time, could the Cabinet Secretary inform the House and Kenyans the plans that the Ministry has for Ngakaa Youth Talent Development Centre in Makindu Ward, Kibwezi West Constituency? It is the centre that produced Winfred Nzavi, Winfred Yavi and many other athletes, but it is in very deplorable conditions.

Hon. Ngusya.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I have the privilege of sitting in the Departmental Committee on Sports and Culture. Thank you very much, Cabinet Secretary. How much will the new stadium cost the taxpayers and who is constructing it? Then, there is also the issue of pending salaries for World Rally Championship (WRC) assistant directors. They were neither paid nor signed contracts. When are you planning to pay them and when will they sign the contracts?

Thank you.

Thank you, Hon. CNN. Hon. Lenguris. Give her the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also thank Waziri for the elaborate explanation of the work that he does at the Ministry, which we really appreciate. I do not have a question but a request. Samburu is far from here. Every time we hear about the programmes in the National Government, nobody considers Samburu County. I know that Waziri has been there. It has one of the poorest fields. I cannot call it a stadium, but it is a field. I had a tournament last December. I had to spread sand every morning so that the players could use it. We have a terrible field in Samburu. We are far from all the other regions that you are building stadia. I kindly request you to consider Samburu County, when you are planning. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Thank you.

Hon. Oyula.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I was happy when the Cabinet Secretary said that one of his targets is to develop talents from the lower-level primary schools, secondary schools and so forth. With the little money we used to have in the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) for sports, we organised football teams in the constituency. We did that to help those who have already left school and have nothing to do, so that we could keep them busy with sports throughout the day. Without those funds, we have nothing to help those youths in the constituencies. Could the Cabinet Secretary consider putting aside something for sports in the constituencies, so that we can help those youths to improve their sports talents?

By something, do you mean money?

Yes. Hon. Speaker, we will talk about county governments. That responsibility falls under them. I can assure the Cabinet Secretary that Busia County has more problems than considering funding anything to do with sports. Therefore, our youths will stay there and the only thing we will see is thuggery in the villages. Could the Cabinet Secretary consider supporting constituencies in sports? Thank you.

Hon. Ruweida.

Ahsante. Waziri, mwanzo, ningependa kukupongeza na kukushukuru wakati ulikuwa Waziri wa Barabara, Usafiri na Kazi za Umma. Ulijua Lamu Mashariki haina barabara na ukafanya mipango mizuri. Ahsante. Saa hii pia, ningependa ufikirie kuhusu Lamu Mashariki katika upande wa michezo. Hakika kwa miaka kadhaa au tangu uhuru upatikane, hakuna kitu kimefanywa katika Eneo Bunge la Lamu Mashariki katika upande wa michezo. Nimesikia mipango yote ambayo umezungumzia. Kaunti ya Lamu haina uwanja wa Serikali ya Kitaifa wala ya kaunti. Katika mipangilio yote, sisi tunaachwa nyuma. Nakuomba kwa hisani yako kama unaweza kutaja kitu kimoja ambacho kimefanywa Lamu Mashariki na hii Wizara. Niambie tu kimoja. Na kama hakipo, kuanzia sasa, utuweke akilini ili chochote kile kinachofanywa huku, hata nasi tufanyiwe. Ahsante. Umezungumzia mambo ya vilabu ambavyo viko. Labda unaweza kuziwezesha. Kama huzijui, kuna klabu ndogo ambazo zinaweza kuwezeshwa kama vile King Loyal, Biladi, Faaza United na zingine nyingi. Ahsante.

Is that Hon. Akujah?

I am Hon. Namuar.

Yes, Hon. Namuar.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also thank the Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports. I acknowledge the importance of sports and thank the Cabinet Secretary, Hon. Murkomen, for taking it seriously. Let me give the background of OKM Tournament that was solely mobilised by the Cabinet Secretary. It forms an integral part of peace. How can he allocate funds and call them “Sports for Peace”, especially in those far-flung areas like Turkana, West Pokot, Samburu and the rest? I will really appreciate. He has been in Turkana, especially in Lodwar, where I come from and represent. I wish he could also build a stadium in that place, so that we can nurture sports and promote peace. Thank you.

Hon. Parashina. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Firstly, I congratulate the Waziri . Secondly, I also request to, if possible, have a kamukunji with the

. It is coming out clearly that sports really touch the youth. I wonder why many Members of Parliament are not in the House, when critical things to do with our constituents are being discussed. I know many Members are busy with the impeachment motion.

Ask your question and stop being irrelevant.

Okay, there is no problem. Let me just ask the question. Can we cover other areas? For example, Kajiado has not been mentioned, but we have the best runners and the best people in javelin. Can the sports academy be constructed there? If a proposal is written, I am ready to support them to get more funding for purposes of constructing more centres in the constituency. It was just an observation. Thank you.

Hon. Mukunji.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

I do not want any preambles to your questions. Just ask them.

Hon. Speaker, I also want to applaud Waziri for availing himself and congratulate him for fitting into the new Office of the Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports. I would like him to tell me and explain to my people in Embu when the construction of Njukiri Stadium will start. It is one of those promises that we were given by His Excellency the President when he went there. We have a team called 3K FC that is doing very well nationally. As Waziri is supporting sports from bottom-up, let the money for sports go directly to those teams that are from mashinani.

Thank you. Hon. Ngogoyo.

One at a time. You have asked your question. Hon. Mukunji, we are running out of time. Give him the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also want a clarification for public knowledge. When Waziri came into the Office of the Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports, there was a picture trending of a very quick change of furniture of the Office. I know Waziri as a very prudent person. I want to know if public funds were used or it was just a change of furniture as one Cabinet Secretary was leaving and the other coming in.

Thank you very much.

Hon. Ngogoyo.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I want to ask my namesake, Onesmus, the Cabinet Secretary, the following Question: Ngong hosts a high number of athletes. When you were starting…The Deputy Speaker is distracting me. When you were starting the…

The Deputy Speaker?

Yes. Hon. Gladys Boss. She is pointing at me. She has many fights nowadays.

, you are constructing a stadium somewhere at Ngong Road. More than 300 registered athletes operate from Ngong. Ngong has one of the best altitudes for athletes who run long distance races such as marathon. In her interview with international media, Hellen Obiri mentioned that her greatest disappointment was that she used to train at Ngong but came for her track training at Nyayo Stadium. When your predecessors were starting off the Talanta The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Sports Stadium, the agreement was that they would do something for Ngong athletes because it is one of the hubs that has many people. In your Statement, you said that you are doing two tracks. Why did you not consider doing one in Ngong because you know very well that there is nowhere else around the metropolitan area that has the number of training centers that we have? Actually, most of the international ones are at Ngong. Leave alone that, Government agencies, the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) and the Kenya Police have even stationed their camps for the athletes who do the same at Ngong. But they have also left Ngong Stadium, where they should have operated from, with nothing happening. While all the material, including ballast and sand come from Ngong….

Ask your question, Hon. Ngogoyo.

Waziri, why did you not consider doing the track in Ngong?

Hon. Owen Baya.

Thank you very much, Waziri, for coming here to answer the questions. Just a quick one. When are you considering building a stadium in the North Coast? The North Coast does not have one. We have great talent. Great footballers of Harambee Stars like Abbas Magongo came from Kilifi. Do you want me to give you the list? We do not have...

We know them.

We only have the new one in Kwale. Even Mahamoud Abbas and all those big footballers came from Kilifi. There used to be a team called Lucky Boys. It was a big team and one of the greatest in this country, but then no one has ever considered to look at the North Coast as a home of talent and build a stadium there. During your tenure, look at it and see what you can do and make sure that North Coast has a stadium. Thank you.

Thank you, Hon. Owen. You have made your point. How many more hands do I see? Hon. Member for Kesses Constituency, ask one question. We want to bring this to a close. Those who have just come in, I am not giving you any time.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker and Waziri . You are a sports person and you are in the right Ministry. Just a follow up on a question by Hon. Parashina, I would wish the Waziri to state the plans he has to ensure the spread of sports academies across the 290 constituencies. Recently, we saw a few of them on notice and we are yearning to know whether there are progressive plans. Lastly, on the issue of athletes, thank you for considering the sports under Kipchoge Keino Stadium. The Cabinet Secretary is aware that along the Iten and Moiben roads, our athletes suffer in finding places to train. They risk getting accidents on the roads. Are there deliberate plans to put a track all the way to Iten on the side of the road so that we allow our athletes, especially the long-distance runners, to use those areas and save them from the risks of getting hit by motorists on the road and all those hullabaloos? The issue of gender-based violence is now a serious phenomenon within our athlete community. We need to do something deliberate as a society.

That has been asked. Cabinet Secretary, can you quickly answer all those questions?

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. First of all, let me say that Hon. Maungu’s question….

Just hold on, Cabinet Secretary. Woman Representative Nakuru County, what is the issue? Just hold on Cabinet Secretary. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. Thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for appearing before us and congratulations on behalf of Nakuru County. My question to the Cabinet Secretary is about Olenguruone Stadium. Its construction was started 10 years ago, but nothing much has gone on. I want to hear from the Cabinet Secretary the kind of intervention he will undertake as far as Olenguruone Stadium is concerned. We are suffering. Our youths are suffering because of that stadium in Kuresoi South has stalled.

Cabinet Secretary, can you proceed?

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Let me start with Hon. Maungu’s question. I will follow up with the payment for the members of Luanda Villa Soccer Club (SC) team who were the winners of the Division One League. I will follow up on the same to make sure that they are paid. We will also make sure that a few other sportsmen and women whose money has not been disbursed is done expeditiously. Hon. Mutuse, Ngaga Training Centre is not among the ones that have been advertised. As we have discussed with you, we will make it a priority in the next round to make sure that it is taken care of. Hon. Charles Nguna, CNN, asked about the cost of the new stadium. I do not have the figures here because we contracted the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Stadiums through the Ministry of Defence. Maybe, in the next supplementary budget, I should be able to supply the same either here or through the relevant Committee. I was trying to text a colleague on the other side but because we are here, it has not been possible. We do not have directors for the World Rally Championships (WRC). We just have a committee. We do not have directors who have not been paid, but if there is any complaint, it should be addressed specifically. The funny thing about that sector is that we have very many people carrying many papers demanding certain payments of contracted works. Some claim they were directors or committee members. We are trying to streamline issues to ensure that records are kept well and if one is not part of the record, they cannot be contracted as an afterthought, that is, after the fact. I agree with Hon. Pauline Lenguris of Samburu County. Actually, when I sat in that Office for two weeks, I realised that nobody talks about Lamu, Tana River, Garissa, Wajir, Mandela, Marsabit, Turkana, and all that northern belt, including West Pokot. Nobody mentions whether they need a stadium or not. There is a general mentality that stadiums are supposed to be in the so-called white highlands and so forth. That should not be the case. Kilifi falls in that category of marginalised areas. I promise, progressively, we will make sure that we do affirmative action. The same way I did in the Ministry of Roads and Transport, I will be very deliberate also in the Ministry of Sports, to make sure those areas are considered for stadium development. We have Samburu and Isiolo as part and parcel of the affected areas. Hon. Oyula asked about NG-CDF. Unfortunately, Mheshimiwa, this falls back to yourself. It is upon you Members to look at the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG- CDF) Act and ask yourselves why were you not able to finance sports and yet, sports are education. So long as you are supporting education, you are supporting sports because it is part of the facilities of education. I do not know any other interpretation that would support education. Let me use this opportunity to say I support NG-CDF. Even when I was in the Senate, I still supported NG-CDF. I believe it is the best managed Fund in the country in terms of development. So, we should allow it to also support sports facilities because it is extremely important. I think the interpretation that NG-CDF is unconstitutional, from my position, is misguided. We are allowed to criticise decisions. Now, on the question of Hon. Obo Ruweida, again, just like I promised Hon. Pauline Lenguris, I will do the same for your county. I will make sure that in the next batch of sports The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

academies, we will consider the marginalised areas because that is affordable. We can start from there as we move towards 15,000 sports facilities. Hon. Joseph Namuar, I am inspired by your suggestion. I was even asked during vetting about the role of sports in promoting peace. I think we should transition what we started together as well-wishers and Community Social Responsibility (CSR) to the people of North Rift. We can think through it as a Government, that is, how we can structure it to remain consistent in terms of dealing with the menace of banditry and other peace-related issues in Kerio Valley. The initiative should be owned by the counties and the leadership from that region. I also need to say that when we were playing that tournament in Turkana, I was very surprised that we were playing at almost 40 degrees Celsius at midday and on sand. Your county and others deserve to be treated differently as marginalised areas. Hon. Parashina, maybe he has left, but I received your letter regarding the sports academy. We will do our best to address the issues you raised in Kajiado. Since you are not here, perhaps, we can start with Ngong.

I received your letter. Thank you very much. We will consider it. When it comes to Hon. Gitonga Mukunji's question, yes, I am informed that before the Embu Stadium was constructed, Njukiri Stadium was supposed to be the first one. So, we will see in the queue how else we can come back to Embu after considering a few of your colleagues here who are in serious problems. At least, you have one stadium. Because of Madaraka Day, it moved to Embu, but initially Njukiri Stadium was supposed to be the priority in that place. You have asked the question of office furniture. I almost said what Mr. Mario Balotelli once said: “Why always me”? The Cabinet Secretary does not furnish offices nor procure furniture for furnishing offices. The truth of the matter is that the furniture that is established there is part of furniture for Talanta offices. We have not fully occupied Talanta yet. In fact, the Principal Secretary’s office is still squatting somewhere. The Principal Secretary has not moved to Talanta . For people who know it, it is a new building. So, it is being re-done and then it will be furnished. Luckily, my predecessor was there and when I came in, the furniture was moved to other offices and other furniture was brought there. I did not move with the furniture from the Ministry of Transport. It is the work of the Ministry to furnish the entire building and that will go on until all the stuff is done. The reason I asked “why always me” is that people are saying the furniture is very beautiful and yet, it is the furniture that is in all the other Ministry offices across the country. However, I am used to that now. Hon. Onesmus Ngogoyo, very true. I recently had a meeting with Ms. Mary Moraa after she came from the Diamond League. She has also trained there. She came with Mr. Timothy Cheruiyot and we had a long discussion about what we should do with Ngong. I agree with you that we should prioritise Ngong. Other than Iten, Ngong is the other place that has very many high-altitude training athletes and we are going to do something to make sure that it is sorted out. That includes both the stadium for track events and the routes that are used to run along the hills. When county governments are giving out permits for people to construct, they need to take care of routes that are used for training. We need to preserve Ngong as a jewel for our athletes. We deserve to do so. Hon. Owen Baya, what you said is true. There is a plan to do something in Shanzu to start with. Shanzu is in Mombasa. I believe that we should also move to Kilifi County to make The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

sure that you have a proper facility. However, what we want to do in Shanzu is of international standard, that is, the equivalent of Nyayo stadium or somewhere between Nyayo and Kasarani stadiums or between Nyayo Stadium and Talanta. That is because the low altitude competitions are held in places like the Coast region. We want one stadium to be done there of a magnitude that can help us in hosting competitions because you cannot host them in very high altitude areas. Hon. Julius Rutto, I agree that we need to safeguard the roadsides for running by our athletes. When I was in the Ministry of Roads and Transport, we had worked together in doing that. In Iten, our plan was to make sure that we safeguard running tracks with murram. You do not need to put the tarmac on the side roads that are used by the runners. I think that should go on and I believe that my colleagues in the roads and transport sector will continue the good work and the plans that we had. It is not just in Elgeyo Marakwet, but in all the training areas across the country, especially where people run. That will help. In addition, the preservation of forests and running areas around the forests will also be useful for athletes because they are off the road and we can avoid accidents that happen like was the case of Mr. Geoffrey Kamwaror. We were unable to have him for international competitions because of that.

Last but not least, is the concern by Hon. Liza Chelule. She asked about Olenguruone Stadium. That stadium is a county facility and we believe that, if you work together with the County Government of Nakuru, you should be able to deliver a good facility for Olenguruone. Also, as we work towards delivery of the Sports Academy for Kuresoi South, that may be an area to be considered for construction. We also have some other projects that we are working with development partners and we will see whether we can identify that one area. We know that is the home of Faith Kipyegon and many other athletes. It is also the neighbourhood of Beatrice Chebet. We know that the area produces some of the top athletes in the country. Hon. Speaker, with those many remarks…

Cabinet Secretary, there is a Member who has been here since we started, and has been raising his hand. We have passed him many times. Let him be the very last. Hon. Ferdinand Wanyonyi.

Hon. Abdullahi Bashir, you just came in a few minutes ago!

Let me talk first. Thank you very much Hon. Speaker.

Ask your question.

First, I thank you for giving a very good report on the preparations for the 2027 Confederation of African Football (CAF). However, you have not mentioned Kitale Stadium in Trans Nzoia, which is under construction. Bwana Cabinet Secretary, with a lot of talent in Trans-Nzoia, why has that stadium not been done? You have not done anything on it. I do not know whether you can approach the contractor in Eldoret to do the CSR and complete Kitale Stadium because Tran- Nzoia has a lot of talent. You have not mentioned it and so, I thought of reminding you of the same. That is because it is part of the North Rift and I want you to do something about it.

Last but not least, Bwana Cabinet Secretary, people will be coming from all over the country and world. There is a lot of thuggery in Kenya by the youths. Please, ensure you heighten security so that we are not embarrassed. Also, you have not mentioned about offering accommodation to visitors. That is very important because we want our country to have a very good image. Those preparations should be mentioned here so that we can know and assist. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Cabinet Secretary, that is the very last question. Hon. Bashir, when I say that is the last one, respect it.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. He has mentioned that in other places, the stadia are ongoing or have stalled. But in Wajir, Mandera and Garissa, nothing is ongoing.

He has mentioned that area and said you are marginalised. So, he will give you affirmative action.

Hon. Speaker, I want him to come out clearly and say that something will be done in Wajir, Mandera and Garissa without saying that the area is marginalised. Cabinet Secretary, what plans do you have for Wajir, Mandera, Garissa and other counties in the northern part, specifically those that do not have stadiums? Please, give timelines so we can know the date you will start. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Cabinet Secretary.

Hon. Speaker, on Hon. Wanyonyi’s question, the Kitale Stadium is a county facility and is being done by the county. Until such a time when we have a partnership, if need be, we will see what to do. At the moment, it is being done and managed by the County Government of Trans Nzoia. Secondly, is the issue of preparations for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) which he rightly said is not just about infrastructure. Today, I have just mentioned about infrastructure. But I will be chairing an inter-governmental meeting with other Cabinet Secretaries to discuss the overall preparations such as infrastructure, airports, roads, housing and security. Also, that is an opportunity for people to invest in AFCON by building hotels within the vicinity of important stadia, providing transport facilities and so forth. I agree with Hon. Ferdinand Wanyonyi that I should come back sometime next year to talk comprehensively about the Government’s preparedness for the tournament beyond sports facilities, including preparing Harambee Stars. On the question by Hon. Bashir, I do not need to repeat myself. The reality is that there are no plans at the moment to a build a 10,000-seater international stadium in that region. What exists is the Tarbaj Sports Academy which is part of the 30 academies that have been advertised. For us to build a proper stadium in that region, as I said and will reiterate, it requires affirmative action from the national Government. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Cabinet Secretary, we have come to the end of our interaction. Well done! If there are any outstanding issues, you can be invited to the committees anytime. Please try to manage our football teams. Secondly, foreigners who come for high-altitude training must be treated as high-end tourists. They must pay sufficient premium to boost our economy. I do not know what plans you have for the high-altitude training. I know of Paula Radcliffe and other fellows who train in our county. They rent little huts and do not contribute to the economy. Then, they go ahead to be world-beaters after enjoying our serene facilities. What are your plans? In other jurisdictions, you find that kind of training is a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country.

Hon. Speaker, I truly recognise your passion for football and organisation of our teams. Since I came for vetting and when I meet you privately, you always insist that… The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Even when we watch Arsenal matches together.

Yes, even when we watch Arsenal suffer together. I believe we need to sort out that area. Thank you for your support and that of Hon. Members. This is not an easy area. It has had problems for a long time. We will do everything possible in the upcoming elections to ensure that we open up the space and democracy prevails. It is so that we can get the best people to manage our football. On the question about our athletes, allow me to think about it further. That is because we will be asked why we are charging a person who has come to train higher fees than the one who has come to film at the national park. In our policy consideration, we will have a holistic approach to the same. Also, when we build facilities like Kamariny Stadium, Kipchoge Stadium or Kapsabet Stadium, they will access them at a higher fee than the locals. Those training facilities will help us to get some resources. I truly agree with you that those people make a lot of money after training here. They live in small cubicles in the training facility and leave very little investment. There has been failure in the past in terms of investors. Very few people have invested in facilities. For example, Ngong, as we discussed with Hon. Ngogoyo, if we had a proper stadium there, people would put up hotels and get a lot of money. I want to tell the private sector that they have an opportunity to make money in sports. It is an area which can enrich the Republic. Thank you, Hon. Speaker for giving me this opportunity. I have enjoyed the discussion with Hon. Members. It has been very exciting to serve in this Ministry for the last one month. I look forward to further interactions.

Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. You are released to go back to your Ministry with your team. Next Order.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, this House adopts the Report of the Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations on its consideration of the Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African Union relating to the Pan-African Parliament, laid on the Table of the House on Thursday, 19th September 2024 and, pursuant to the provisions of section 8(4) of the Treaty Making and Ratification Act, CAP 4D, approves the Ratification of the Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African Union relating to the Pan-African Parliament.

Hon. Deputy Speaker, the National Assembly Standing Orders have mandated the Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations to, among other things, examine treaties, agreements and conventions. The Committee Report before the House details the Committee’s consideration of the Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Union that is relating to the Pan-African Parliament. The Protocol was adopted at the 23rd Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly of Heads of States and Government held on 27th June 2014 in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. It governs the operations of the Pan-African Parliament with an aim of enhancing the full and effective participation of African people in the economic, development and integration of the Continent. I am sure many Members of Parliament, without prejudice, have really never understood how the Pan-African Parliament operates. This Protocol makes it easy for countries to understand the role of the Pan-African Parliament. This particular Protocol has given specific areas of how the structures will be modelled. The Protocol has outlined the composition, powers, functions and structure of the Pan-African Parliament, including its organs such as the plenary and committees. It seeks to provide a voice for the African people and diaspora to promote African Union (AU) policies, uphold human rights, democracy and good governance, as well as foster co-operation. Additionally, the Protocol aspires to advance peace, prosperity and solidarity across Africa, while promoting regional integration and active involvement of the African diaspora. This will be very interesting to the Members of the Pan-African Parliament because, for the first time, other than what was provided for by the African Union, the Pan-African Parliament will be able to have some established kind of order in terms of how the committees will be running; how the plenary will be running and so on. The Protocol and the accompanying Parliamentary Memorandum on the Ratification of the Protocol from the Ministry of the Foreign and Diaspora Affairs were laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 8th of August 2023 and, subsequently, committed to the Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations. Pursuant to Article 118 of the Constitution, 1 (b) and Section 8 (3) of the Treaty Making and Ratification Act, Cap 4d, the Committee placed an advertisement in two local dailies on the 16th of November 2023, calling for the submission of memoranda from the public regarding the ratification of the Protocol. However, by the close of the deadline, the Committee had not received any memoranda for or against the ratification of the convention. Like I was saying, not many people really understand how the Pan-African Parliament operates. As I said, even Members of Parliament struggle to understand how it operates. I hope that this Protocol will make it very easy for Members of Parliament and the public from all the countries that have Members seconded to the Pan-African Parliament to understand it even better and appreciate the role that the Pan-African Parliament plays in the African Union and enhancing co-operation between African countries in this platform of parliament in the Pan- African Parliament. In its deliberation, the Committee was briefed by representatives from the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs on 5th December 2023, who presented the justification of the proposed ratification of the Protocol. Hon. Deputy Speaker, having considered the Protocol and analysed the submissions made, the Committee observed the following; 1. The Protocol aligns with the Constitution of Kenya and upholds the constitutional values. 2. The Protocol could advance the participation of the African people in governance, safeguarding democratic principles, protecting human rights and promoting good governance across the Continent by giving a voice to the African citizens and diaspora. 3. The Protocol will facilitate the integration and development of Africa and strengthen the democratic framework of the African Union by creating a platform for elected representatives from the national parliaments to engage in continental affairs. To date, I am certain, other than the information that is brought before the House and reports that are brought by Members from the Pan-African Parliament, it will be very few, The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

except very keen observers from the public, who will understand what is discussed in the Pan- African Parliament. Very few will relate to the Pan-African Parliament. Very few will even be keen on following what happens in the Pan-African Parliament. So, this Protocol will make it extremely simple for members of the public from all those African countries to follow up and understand the operations of Pan-African Parliament through this Protocol. As of the time of consideration, 15 AU member-States had deposited their instruments of ratification. Kenya signed the Protocol on 16th July 2023, and is yet to ratify it. Kenya's participation in the Pan-African Parliament enhances its influence in the region and fosters strong co-operation among the African nations. Normally, Kenya is one of the countries that is extremely active in our region. Already, 15 countries in the African Union have already appended their signature to this Protocol, but Kenya is yet to do that. We were lagging behind because of this process that has to be undertaken. By engaging with parliamentarians from across the Continent, Kenya can address and share the challenges and develop collective solutions. Furthermore, participation in the Pan-African Parliament enables Kenya to contribute to shaping regional policies that promote peace, security and socio-economic development. Enhanced regional co-operation provides Kenya with opportunities for trade, investment and knowledge exchange, all of which contribute to its economic growth and prosperity. Before I continue, I think it will be very important in the future that the Members who go to the Pan-African Parliament, particularly those from Kenya, address Parliament on exactly what they have discussed. If you just pay a little attention to what I have just said, there are too many opportunities that we lose because of our people not getting the knowledge of what is available across the borders. It is this Parliament and Members who are seconded to the Pan-African Parliament that should be able to provide the country with detailed information on opportunities across the borders of this country. Thus, enable this country to enhance its trade and even allow free trade and flow of information. This will make sure that even Kenya is able to participate beyond its borders, as well as open borders for trade, investments and opportunities for this country. The obligations of our Protocol fall under the jurisdiction of the national Government. Financial provisions for the Protocol's implementation, including administrative costs, will be factored into the regular budgetary estimates of the relevant institutions. Hon. Deputy Speaker, having reviewed the Protocol and considered the submissions made, the Committee recommends that, pursuant to Section 8 of the Treaty Making and Ratification Act Cap 4D, this House adopts and approves the ratification of the Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African Union relating to the Pan-African Parliament. I beg to move and urge Hon. Major (Rtd) Sheikh Bashir, my Vice-Chairperson, to second.

Just a point of correction, Hon. Chairperson, before the Seconder. You mentioned that the Pan-African Parliament does not bring its reports to this House. In fact, it does and it is the Report of the Extraordinary Session of the Sixth Pan-African Parliament that is in Order No. 20. So, that can be corrected in The Hansard .

I correct that. My point was that the Report must even be subjected not just to the tabling of this House, but even debating it. There have to be other ways of making sure that the information that is brought to this House, other than what is available on The Hansard, is able to reach the public. That is what this Protocol is trying to achieve.

Okay. I am glad with the clarification. You may proceed Seconder.

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I wish to second the Motion that this House approves the ratification of the Protocol to the The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Constitutive Act of the African Union in relation to the Pan-African Parliament. The establishment of the Pan-African Parliament was first envisaged in the treaty establishing the African Economic Community. That Treaty aimed to harmonise policies among existing and future economic communities as a means to gradually establish the African Economic Community. It outlined a phased approach to its realisation, culminating in the final stage where the Pan-African Parliament will be established with its members elected through continental universal suffrage. The Treaty recognised the Pan-African Parliament as one of the essential organs of the African Economic Community and Article 14 provided for the establishment of that Parliament – the Pan-African Parliament – to ensure the full participation of African people in the continent's economic development and integration. The Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African Union related to the Pan-African Parliament as adopted by the Member States of the African Union, establishes the legal framework governing the functioning of the Pan-African Parliament. It aims to ensure the full participation of African States in the continent's economic development and integration. The Pan-African Parliament serves as a platform for representatives from across Africa to engage in discussions and decision-making on the challenges and opportunities facing the Continent. The vision behind the Pan-African Parliament was to provide a common platform for African people, both within the Continent and in the diaspora, to contribute to the dialogue on Africa's development and integration. Kenya, as a country, stands to gain significant benefits from ratifying this Protocol, including demonstration of Kenya's commitment to democratic values, inclusivity and citizen participation. Kenyan Parliamentarians will have a platform to engage in the Continent's decision-making, contribute to policy discussions, build networks and advocate for the interests of the Kenyan people at the continental level. Kenya will align itself with the broader objectives of African unity and integration to strengthen its co-operation with other African nations in addressing common challenges, promoting regional stability and fostering economic co- operation. The Protocol will grant Kenyan Parliamentarians a voice in shaping continental policies and initiatives. This will allow them to propose resolutions, contribute to discussions on matters such as peace and security, human rights and development, and advocate for positions aligned with Kenya's national interest. Active participation in the Pan-African Parliament will elevate Kenya's profile within the African Union and the Continent as a whole. This will provide an opportunity to showcase Kenya's achievements and contributions, potentially attracting investments, tourism and other forms of co-operation. The Pan-African Parliament serves as a critical platform for shaping continental policy initiatives. Kenya's participation enables its Parliamentarians to propose resolutions, influence decisions and discussions on peace, security, human rights, economic integration and sustainable development. Active engagement will allow Kenya to assert herself as a regional leader and ensure that her perspectives are considered in continental decision-making processes. This Protocol has 17 Articles and of importance are three Articles, that is Article 4, Article 5 and Article 7. Article 4 talks about election of Members to the Pan-African Parliament. It provides that five members be elected by Parliament from outside its membership and Parliament to ensure that there is political diversity. This is actually in line with how we elect the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) Members. So, the same way EALA Members are elected is the same way the Pan-African Parliament Members will be elected. Article 5 provides that the term of office is five years and a Member can be re-elected for a further one more term. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Clerks-at-the Table, switch off the warning lights and add the Hon. Member more time.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker Article 7 provides that the Pan-African Parliament shall be the legislative organ of the African Union. Just like this Parliament is the legislative arm of Kenya, the Pan-African Parliament will become the legislative arm of the African Union. That is how important it is. On how Members will serve and their numbers, initially from this Parliament, we had two Members. However, this Protocol says we need to have five Members elected using the same criteria as EALA’s, that looks at diversity and the number of political parties. This is very critical because one, any person who will serve in the Pan-African Parliament – even if he is elected as a Member of Parliament and wishes to join the Pan-African Parliament – once he or she is elected by this House, he or she will resign and join the Pan-African Parliament. So, it is very critical. Two, once every term, the Pan-African Parliament will deliver its report to the African Union in the same way they have been doing it here. So, that is very critical. We need to approve this Protocol so that we can partake in shaping the legislative agenda and economic discussions of the African Union in terms of participating in the Pan- African Parliament. So, having reviewed the Protocol and considered the submissions that have been made, I am confident that the ratification of the Protocol will advance Kenya's national interests. I therefore, urge this House to approve the ratification of the Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African Union related to the Pan-African Parliament. I support the Motion and urge the House to adopt this Report. I thank you.

The Member of Parliament for Yatta, Hon. Robert Bassil.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I had actually slotted in my card to contribute to the Technopolis Bill.

Okay. Hon. Nyikal, were you going to contribute to this one?

(Seme, ODM)

You may proceed.

(Seme, ODM)

Member for Marsabit County, Hon. Naomi Waqo.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. Looking at the House, it is clear that many Members are out for other meetings. This is a very important debate. I know many Members would want to participate. Therefore, pursuant to Standing Order 96(1), I move that debate on this Motion be adjourned to enable more Members to contribute to this very important Motion. We can proceed with other business.

There was no one on the Floor when the debate on the Bill was interrupted yesterday. We can come to you, Hon. Basil. Proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I was not there when the Mover moved the Bill. Technopolises are industrial parks which spur innovation and attract local and foreign investors. It is important to support the Bill because it will create jobs. We have many unemployed youths in Kenya today. Technology will upgrade employment for Kenyans. This Bill will also ensure that we diversify our country’s sources of revenue. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

One of the flaws of the Bill is that it will increase the burden on the taxpayers. Many taxpayers want investments in areas where money can be recouped. Investing in industrial parks will require huge amounts of money, which will slow down the development in terms of how much money can be generated through industrial parks. More importantly, the Bill will create disparities in terms of development because the parks are likely to be constructed in urban areas and leave out the rural areas. Another flaw I see in this Bill is investing money in stalled projects. We have seen this with Konza City which has consumed billions of shillings, which have not been recouped. If we had invested that money in irrigation, we would currently be talking of food security through irrigated agriculture. In view of that, I caution that investments in industrial parks should not be made using taxpayers’ money. We should get private investors to pump money into that endeavour. With that, I support the Bill, but with amendments. Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker.

Hon. James Nyikal, did you want to speak to this Bill?

Thank you once again, Hon. Deputy Speaker. We are coming up with great ideas today that are not receiving much attention. The concept of this technopolis, which is actually an industrial park, is for innovation. The bigger idea behind it is the use of knowledge in production. In many countries, such technopolises are linked to universities which create industrial parks where university dons conduct research, and the new ideas that are generated are immediately applied and commercialised. You find that as ideas emerge, they are utilised for production and improvement of mankind. In healthcare, we have what is called the “know-do gap” where there is knowledge, but it is not being used. Historically, the greatest example of this phenomenon where knowledge was not used was in the cure of scurvy, which is caused by Vitamin C deficiency. For 100 years, people knew that scurvy could be treated and prevented by the intake of Vitamin C and yet, sailors were dying. That knowledge was not being utilised until somebody figured out that all they had to do was to carry some citrus fruits on long voyages, and that saved sailors.

In Africa, people see universities as institutions for training young people, which is a second mandate. The first mandate of universities is to create new knowledge. How then do we apply it to our industries? With this technopolis idea, you can apply new knowledge and link it with industries to immediately improve its production and commercialisation. This will improve production for consumption, export, foreign exchange and employment. This is something that we should encourage. This Act creates a framework which will ensure that those technopolises link with universities and industries and, therefore, generate or improve innovation. It is something we should support. I agree with the previous speaker that in ideal circumstances, this is not an area where we should allocate a huge amount of money from the taxpayer’s kitty. Maybe, as we look through this Act, we need to find a way to get more funding from industries other than from the taxpayers' kitty. Eventually, if innovation occurs and knowledge is transformed into production, the industries and big companies are the ones to benefit. The intellectual property rights can be shared between the innovators and the industry so that they can benefit. Hon. Temporary Speaker, I think this is an idea that we should support and encourage. We will look at this and see how we can get more money from the industry than taxpayers’ money. If we go towards that direction, people will see them as a creation of new towns using taxpayers' money, which will not serve the purpose for which it has been conceived. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

I support.

Very well.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

What is your point of order, Hon. Kemei?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 35, and looking at the House and the very important business that we have to debate today, I wish to bring to your attention that we do not have a quorum. I know many Members are engaged elsewhere. I, therefore, feel that this can wait for another time. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Member, you are right. There is no quorum in the House. I, therefore, ask the Serjeant-at-Arms to ring the Quorum Bell for ten minutes.

Very well. You can stop the Bell. We have already rung it for 10 minutes. Hon. Members, be upstanding. A Member rose under Standing Order 35 which relates to quorum. I ordered the Quorum Bell to be rung for 10 minutes. I can still confirm there is no quorum in the House.

Hon. Members, the time being 6.10 p.m., this House stands adjourned until Thursday, 26th September 2024, at 2.30 p.m.

The House rose at 6.10 p.m.

The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.

Clerk of the National Assembly Parliament Buildings Nairobi The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor.