The Harare City council has engaged Nakiso Consortium to construct a sporting centre in Donnybrook, east of the capital.

The facility will be built at an open space adjacent to Donnybrook Racecourse and would consist of a stadium.

Speaking to Newsday, former Finance deputy minister Terrence Mukupe, who fronts Nakiso Consortium, said the project is aimed at bringing social amenities to the Donnybrook area.

He said: “Economic development is complemented by the presence of social infrastructures such as sporting facilities, cinemas and educational infrastructure. As Nakiso, we have seen it prudent to ensure the country’s development story is complete and provide the social amenities that have been missing in the Donnybrook area.”

The news comes after the HCC seem to have abandoned the plans to build a football stadium in Budirio, west of Harare.

The proposed 45,000 capacity seater High Glen Stadium would have become the second biggest stadium in Zimbabwe after the National Sports Stadium.

The council approved the release of $1,4 million to facilitate preliminary works for the designing and drawing plans.

They even uploaded a 3D impression of the proposed project and promised to release a detailed plan before the end of 2019.

But almost three years later, there is still nothing to show except for the residential buildings that were declared illegal and faced demolition before the High Court intervened.