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Kenya will reap big rewards by welcoming the rest of the continent for next year’s African Nations Championships (CHAN) and, in 2027, hosting the African Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Principal Secretary of the State Department of Sports Peter Tum says the two coveted football tournaments will place Kenya highly as a premier destination for sports tourism and leave a lasting mark due to the immense work done in infrastructure such as stadiums and transport networks.

“Hosting CHAN 2024 and AFCON 2027 is a transformative opportunity that extends far beyond football. These tournaments will position Kenya as a premier destination for sports tourism, attracting visitors from Africa and beyond to experience our rich culture, warm hospitality and iconic landscapes. The influx of visitors will spur growth, create jobs and promote local business and therefore solidifying Kenya’s status for international events.

“Additionally, the championships will catalyze infrastructure development, investment in modernizing sports venues and upgrading hospitality for the generations to come,” PS Tum said during the unveiling of the Local Organizing Committees for the two important footballing bonanzas that are coming home for the first time.

Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have been handed the hosting rights for AFCON and CHAN tourneys but the immediate task is to welcome the guest for CHAN slated for February 1 to February 28 next year.

On paper, it looks like a herculean task but the Ministry of Sports has assured the public of doing everything humanly possible to ensure that the tournament is played on home soil for the first time.

PS Tum, who is the chairperson of the East African Technical Committee for the two events revealed that at the moment henceforth, it is not a Ministry of Sport affair to ensure the success of preparations and the tournament itself having taken a multi-agency approach.

“We have now decided as a Ministry to be prudent with the little resources that we have. We are doing this while looking at ourselves and asking how ready we will be prepared by the time we host CHAN. In the recent few weeks, we have been very fast in ensuring that each and every contractor that is working on any of our stadia is doing so as per the requirements set. We are not taking this as a venture of the Ministry of Sports, it is a whole-government approach.”

CHAN is a second tier of CAF’s men’s competition and involves players who feature in local leagues and this will be the first time for Kenya to participate since the inception of the championship in 2009.

However, the country is in a race against time to make available facilities needed for the continental football extravaganza, something the Cabinet Secretary for Sports Kipchumba Murkomen termed as a ‘positive pressure’.