By Tata Mbunwe
The first modern football pitch in Cameroon’s North West Region, the Bamenda Proximity Stadium, has been officially commissioned by Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute.
This was during his tour of projects executed under the Presidential Plan for the Reconstruction and Development of the North West and South West Regions on July 5.
Speaking at the event, Mbingha Felix, the Mayor of Bamenda I Council where the stadium is based, expressed gratitude for the project but insisted that the region deserves a larger and more befitting stadium.
“This is not what the North West region deserves. We need a bigger field that can host our elites, and why not our national team? They can come to Bamenda and play a match so that the people of Bamenda, who live football so much, can equally watch the Lions live,” Mayor Mbingha said.
Mayor Mbingha, who is also Vice President of the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT), disclosed that he had tabled this request to Prime Minister Dion Ngute during the stadium’s commissioning.
“We even asked the Prime Minister, and he has promised me that’s something to be done. They are going back now; they will work on the field,” the mayor added.
The Bamenda Proximity Stadium, jointly constructed by the Bamenda I Council and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), comes as a major achievement for the city’s football lovers.
The council contributed 65 million FCFA towards the project.
Adorned with synthetic turf, the mini-stadium is equipped with a grandstand, dressing rooms, and toilets.
Mayor Mbingha noted that it has the potential to host Elite One and Elite Two league games, providing elite clubs in the region with a decent venue for their matches.
Looking ahead, he revealed that plans are underway to construct a standard stadium in the region.
Mayor Mbingha Felix said FECAFOOT President, Samuel Eto’o Fils, has already requested land to be made available for the project, as part of his long-standing commitment to develop football infrastructure in Cameroon.
Since taking over the management of Cameroonian football in 2021, the former Indomitable Lions captain has pledged to construct stadiums in all regions of the country, particularly in the North West, where no standard stadium has ever existed.
