President William Ruto has said that his government would stop advocating the legendary Safari Rally Kenya starting in the coming year.
The relocation is a big shift in the way the globally recognised motorsport event is going to be financed.
In a speech at Naivasha on Sunday, March 15, at the closing ceremony of this year’s rally, the president announced that the government would no longer finance the event in the year 2011.
He said that the promotion of the competition and financing would be completely transferred to the private sector.
This is the final Safari Rally in which we will spend government money on advertising. This will have full funding and support by the private sector, beginning next year, said Ruto.
The decision is based on the previous announcement by the Ministry of Sports, Kenya, that it had signed a contract with private sector partners to dominate the course of the recently staged World Rally Championship round in Kenya.
The ministry explained that the setup was to lessen the economic strain on the government in terms of hosting international events.
The announcement by the President also comes as talks still extend on the future of Kenya in the WRC calendar and the current agreement of the country hosting the games is approaching its expiry.
The Safari Rally Kenya is once again regarded as one of the most iconic and challenging events in global motorsport since it returned to the championship calendar in 2021 after 19 years.
In 2014, Kenya won the bid to host the Safari Rally Kenya after settling on an agreement with the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) to make the event a part of the World Rally Championship calendar until 2026.
It was initially planned to take five years, but it was later renewed by an additional year to fit the 2026 edition.
It is currently reported that the government and the FIA are in talks to have another five-year extension.
The rally remains an important part of the sports tourism industry in Kenya and has seen thousands of fans flock to it, creating business prospects for the traders and hospitality operators, especially in Nakuru County.
