Eagles find lovely nest in Uyo stadium

In the last two years the Nigeria Football Federation had found a home for the Super Eagles in Calabar but that relationship with the UJ Esuene Stadium is ending with the birth of the new Akwa Ibom Stadium in Uyo. Briefly said, the only venue in the class of this stadium in Nigeria is the Abuja National Stadium. It is indeed an uncommon facility in this part of the world.

The state Governor, Godswill Akpabio is the driving force behind the project. And he explains how he got inspired.

“For a long when I was much younger and not in position I had always wondered why our leaders do not come back home to

 

 reproduce in Nigeria the kind of quality facilities we see abroad. I have always believed that it would be possible to have such things here too. We may be just a developing nation but there are lots of facilities that we can have here and adequately maintain them for the comfort of our people.

“And this stadium is one of such. The idea is make the people of this state and indeed Nigerians and West Africans have something to be very proud of. It is good to make it possible for Nigerians to enjoy the same kind of amenities they have in Europe here. And this administration is determined to leave something wonderful for posterity.”

The major challenge with having such facilities in Nigeria is usually not about constructing them; it lies with maintenance. The National Stadium in Lagos remains in derelict condition while the Abuja National Stadium which was used by the Eagles against Sudan on October 11 had been out of national use for nearly three years. But the Akwa Ibom Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Mr Monday Uko has stated that lack of maintenance would not be of any challenge.

The 30,000-seater Uyo stadium is now billed to be opened for public use on November 6 when Nigeria (with largely home-based players) face Black Stars of Ghana. Eagles are also billed to play South Africa in the last of their qualifying matches on the road to Morocco 2015.

Uko who conducted journalists around the venue said, “This is a legacy to be handed over to our youths, not only in Akwa Ibom but Nigeria as a whole. At that you know we should build a massive structure like this will not be built and left to rotten away.

“We have a very capable sports ministry but to underline the level the government is taking the issue of maintenance to, a completely independent management outfit has been set up for the stadium to ensure that it is what you are seeing now that you will see when you return here in five years from now. Maintenance was a key part from the project from the conception.”

The construction company Julius Berger has been contracted to maintain the arena for the next 10 years.

Apart from the main bowl which has provision for track and field events, the stadium also has a training pitch annex for both football and athletics. The eight-lane Olympic sized track, it was learnt already has an IAAF certification to host any world class track and field event.

Facilities in the stadium include hospitality suites, bullet proof state box that sits 70, state of the art dressing rooms, sick bay and enough parking spaces.

The NFF president Amaju Pinnick said they were impressed by the quality of work.

“This is just like the one in Munich and Johannesburg but the Uyo stadium is more stylish because it is smaller and compact. We will partner the Akwa Ibom State government for sustainable use to bring out the best talents around,” he said.