Accra: Mr Joseph Nelson, the Western Regional Minister, has expressed satisfaction at the progress of work on the rehabilitation of the Sekondi Sports Stadium. He called for a sustainable plan to keep the facility active and prevent it from re-deteriorating upon completion.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mr Nelson, who had visited the facility at Essipong to inspect work done so far, noted that completing the rehabilitation works would only solve one part of the maintenance problem. He urged the National Sports Authority (NSA) and the Ministry of Sports and Recreation to develop a clear utilisation and revenue-generation strategy to help sustain the stadium.
"When we took office, it was clear that the state of the stadium was not what was claimed to be 90 per cent complete, because its condition was far worse than that," he said. He found it refreshing when the Sports Minister took interest, visited the facility, and got the contractor back to continue the project, which had resulted in visible progress at the stadium, including work on the seating arrangements.
Mr Nelson, however, urged the NSA and the Sports Ministry to consider putting in place sustainable measures as part of the stadium's long-term management strategy. He emphasized, "Once it is done, we should have a good plan in place on how the place will be utilised, so that at least the maintenance of the place can happen. Otherwise, the facility will be left idle to deteriorate again."