Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Kenya, although the national team, the Harambee Stars, has had little international success.
Basketball, volleyball, and netball are also popular sports. Social clubs often offer the opportunity for Kenyans to play football and volleyball.
Netball is played exclusively by women. Internationally, Kenyan athletes are known for their dominance of distance running. Since the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, at which Kip Keino, Naftali Temu, and Amos Biwott all won gold medals, Kenyan distance runners have continually won Olympic medals and major races throughout the world. Catherine Ndereba, for example, repeatedly won marathons in Boston and Chicago.
In March 2019, President Kenyatta appointed Ambassador Amina Mohamed to be the Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Heritage and Culture, replacing her sacked predecessor Rashid Echesa.
She has called for more resource allocation to the Sports Ministry.
Echesa received negative publicity that linked him to Joseph Waswa, the man who conned business magnate Naushad Merali Ksh 10 million after impersonating President Uhuru Kenyatta alongside six others.
It is also alleged that the house in Ruiru where over fake Ksh 32 billion in different currencies and gold was found belonged to him. However, Echesa, a close ally of Deputy President William Ruto, has denied the claims and accused his rivals of spreading propaganda about him.
They were charged with conspiracy to commit a felony by conspiring to make a document with intent to defraud.
Echesa has also been charged alongside three others with six counts of making a false document in the Sh39.5 billion fake arms deal.
The suspects have also been charged with attempting to defraud Sh39 billion from the complainants.
Documents indicated senior government officials working in the military and Ministry of Defence had appended their signatures, including Defence CS Monica Juma.
The foreigners said the deal appeared genuine as Echesa’s team which was moving from one office to another including a military general only identified as Juma who often used vehicles with military number plates.
The suspects further noted all documents involved in the deal had military seals and stamps.
They are also alleged to have obtained Sh11.5 Million from Kozlowski Stanley Bruno by purporting that they will award him with a tender to supply military equipment.
Echesa has also denied impersonating to be Deputy President William Ruto’s PA.
The suspects were also charged with attempting to defraud Sh39 billion from the complainants.
The prosecution opposed bail with the DPP saying if released they might interfere with witnesses and exhibits.
They were however granted Sh1 million bail or an alternative Sh3 million bond each to secure their freedom.
Before Echesa’s scandal, the sports Principal Secretary Ambassador Kirimi Kaberia was at pains to explain to the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee (PAC) why the ministry opted to single-source some of the suppliers for the IAAF World Under-18 Championships held in Nairobi 2016.
Kaberia was appearing before the Opiyo Wandayi led the committee to defend the ministry after an Auditor General’s 2016/2017 report disclosed that up to Sh1.7bn was lost during the week-long championships held at the Kasarani Stadium.
The Launch Of The Iten Urban Economic Plan Municipality executed in partnership with the United Kingdom Government through the Sustainable Urban Economic Development Programme (SUED) in Elgeyo Marakwet County.
The investment will open up concrete opportunities for young sports talents both local and international. It will also boost sports tourism and boost Iten’s urban development status.
Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Sports, Culture and Heritage Amina Mohammed said that there is a need in joining hands to avoid the illegal practices.
“The greatest threat to our sports excellence and to the health of our athletes is doping. My plea today is that we all join hands, the whole sports infrastructure in our country to protect our sporting prowess and heritage from these illegal practices and habits.” Said Amina Mohammed.
The Ushanga Initiative Nunua Shanga Jenga Mama Beads Campaign is another great achievement by the ministry of sports, culture and heritage.
The project is meant to empower pastoralist women involved in beadwork by transforming their traditional art into tradable commodities for significant economic benefit and sustainable livelihoods.
The Ushanga Initiative Community Model is anchored on mobilizing women into organized cooperative groups, providing infrastructure for production, and facilitating access to local, regional, and international markets.
The Chief Administrative Secretary to the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Heritage Hassan Nor Hassan said that the initiative is structured to empower the pastoralist women and bring their contributions to the manufacturing ecosystem.
“The Ushanga Initiative is structured to empower these women by building the beadwork manufacturing and distribution ecosystem to cater for the entire production value chain from collection of beads, assemblage, branding, marketing, sale, investment and industrial scale,” said Hassan Nor Hassan.
This project will also raise awareness of the cultural and economic value of the bead. I am especially grateful to UNFPA, Health Relief International Kenya, the Turkish Embassy and other development partners who have collaborated with us to harness the transformative power of this initiative.
In 2021, we aim to have trained 3,500 women to the level of master beaders. We have completed a design and production centre to incubate resulting businesses.
The final phase of establishing infrastructure for e-commerce that will optimize business performance for the cooperatives and enhance sustainability.
The hosting an outstanding final edition of the IAAF World U18 Championships last year by Nairobi demonstrated its readiness to take the next step as a championship host.
Crowds of up to 60,000 attended the U18 championships at Nairobi’s Moi International Sports Centre, creating an exciting atmosphere for the young athletes who had gathered from around the globe.
The Principal Secretary for Sports in Kenya, Kirimi Kaberia, noted that 42 per cent of Kenya’s population was under 15 (only 17 per cent over 50) and sport was a vital component in the country’s development.
“Athletics is a very important part of our life,” he said. “Everyone loves athletics in Kenya. You saw it during the World U18 Championships and you will see it again in 2020.”
The 2020 Magical Kenya Open Golf Championship, part of the European Tour, that took place at the Karen Country Club from the 12th to the 15th of March 2020, brought together different gulf players from around the globe to showcase their skills and celebrate our local golf heroes.
CS Sports congratulates Athletics Kenya on its 70th Anniversary celebrations saying that these great leaders maintained the strong Kenyan track and field tradition that has contributed immensely to the total 103 medals won by Kenya at the Olympic Games, mainly in track and field. My ministry is in the process of documenting these triumphs and achievements in virtual archives through a partnership that we shall unveil soon.
Athletics Kenya remains the most successful sports federation in Kenya, having produced a galaxy of stars who have followed in the footsteps of pioneers such as Nyandika Maiyoro, Wilson Kiprugut Chumo, Amos Biwott, Kipchoge Keino, Naftali Temu, Naftali Bon, Ben Jipcho, Tecla Chemabwai Sang, Tegla Loroupe, Lydia Stephens, Elizabeth Jemeli Chesire, Hezekiah Nyamau, Robert Ouko, Julius Sang and Charles Asati, among others.
Their achievements stand out, with Kiprugut the first Kenyan to win an Olympic medal a bronze in the 880 yards (now 800m) at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. This was after Maiyoro was among the first Kenyan athletes to compete in a global contest in 1954.
Despite the Confederation of African Football (CAF) imposing sh1 million fine on Kenya after former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Deputy President William Ruto invaded the pitch at Kasarani Stadium after Harambee Stars game against Comoros last month.
CAF had earlier released strict protocols barring fans from attending all qualification matches as a way of curbing the spread of Covid-19.