Burkina Faso: renovation work on the 4 August Stadium is not progressing

A Confederation of African Football (CAF) inspection mission visited Burkina Faso at the end of August to take stock of four stadiums. The mission's task is to report back on the refurbishment of the 4 August Stadium in Ouagadougou. As well as its report on the renovation of the 4 August Stadium, the CAF envoy was also tasked with gathering all useful information on the Issoufou Joseph Conombo Municipal Stadium in Ouagadougou, the Naaba Baongo Stadium in Tanghin and the Ziniaré Stadium. Officially launched in March 2021, the renovation works on the 4 August Stadium, Burkina Faso's main ground, which was suspended by CAF for no longer meeting international standards, have dragged on for more than two years without being completed.

"I came myself to see the work first-hand so I could report back better, because the 4 August Stadium is one of the first stadiums to be suspended for non-compliance," Muhammad Feizal Sidat, the CAF head of mission, explained at the outset, before pointing out areas for improvement, notably the dressing rooms, the press stand and some technical installations. According to him, the main problem for countries is that they do not involve CAF in the construction or renovation of stadiums. From now on, CAF and the countries will work together to develop sports infrastructure that meets CAF standards, he added.

There is a lot to do...

On the work at the 4 August Stadium, Muhammad Feizal Sidat pointed to numerous shortcomings: "To be clear, some of the work needs to be changed to meet the specifications. Some things frankly need renovation and changes of plan. For example, the dressing rooms are on the opposite side from the stands, the conference rooms are positioned in a way that makes access difficult for players, and even the press are housed on the officials' side. Yet in modern stadiums, there are dedicated entrances for the press, officials and so on. We would have liked to follow this project from the start; unfortunately, we are looking at it now and we can see things that are not functional under CAF requirements," said the head of the CAF inspection mission.

Sidat also stressed that the contractors in charge of the work are not qualified for the job. "You need to hire companies with expertise in building modern stadiums, because building a stadium is different from building a house." On the other hand, the CAF inspection mission found that the seats comply with the standards set by CAF. "Apart from the installation of the seats, all the refurbishment work has to be redone." As for the three other, smaller stadiums, the Ziniaré ground has a fine artificial pitch, although structural improvements are needed, the head of the CAF inspection mission explained.

Burkinabè football's stakeholders still have a long road ahead, and the wait to see the Étalons play at home will go on for some time. One thing is certain: Burkina Faso's main stadium will not be operational in 2023.

Ablam GNAMESSO