'Kempes' lauds Talanta Hela Decision to go international

Talanta Hela U-19 boys (Green) inn action during a friendly match against Spain's Nastic Soccer Academy in March. [Courtesy]

Former Kenya International Sammy Owino "Kempes" says the government has taken the right trajectory in giving the Kenyan youth a chance to showcase their talent at the international level through Talanta Hela Initiative.

Reacting to an announcement by Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba that the country has entered teams for all youth world cup qualifiers this year, Owino, himself a product of Olympic Youth Development program of the 1970s said the future of the country in football can only be solid if the right foundation is laid and the proper infrastructure put in place.

In a post on his facebook account on Wednesday, CS Namwamba said: "For the first time in Kenya's history, we are entering teams for all youth World Cup qualifiers at each age level, both boys and girls."

Namwamba added: "Part of the deliberate international and structured revival of Kenyan football, anchored on investment in youth and grassroots. Building tomorrow today."

The CS said he was delighted to see so many products of the government backed Talanta Hela pipeline in these national teams.

And Owino now says investment in the youth will boost development of the game in the country

"I am impressed by what the Sports ministry is doing. It is a step in the right direction but more still needs to be done to have a solid foundation," he said.

"To have quality players at the top level, we must invest in youth development and have the infrastructure at the grassroot level to act as the foundation for growth," he stated.

However, he said this can only happen if the government, the federation and the corporate sector work together.

"Currently, we have no sustainable youth structures. We have to create that environment where players can grow and that is only possible if we create youth leagues of different age groups and tournaments such as Chapa Dimba (sponsored by Safaricom) can supplement the leagues," Owino observed.

Former Harambee stars and Gormahia midfielder Sammy Owino 'Kempes' during an inetrview with the Standard on 25th May 2023. [Denis Kibuchi, Standard]

He said the government is playing a good role with the Talanta Hela while at the same time appreciated the investment by corporates like Safaricom but added that all these need to be done with some focus on a solid future.

"Tournaments like Chapa Dimba are good for talent identification, but we must have a long-term sustainable program for building talent and that can only be achievable if we have youth development centers and youth leagues whose focus is on holistic talent building."

According to Owino, the school curriculum should be formulated to create an environment where talent can be nurtured. He says the ministry of education should be key in such a project.

"If we can develop talent from the lower level, our clubs will have it easy enrolling young local talent and the quality of the league will grow and in turn we will see the performance of the national teams also improve," he said.

He said more emphasis also needs to be placed on nurturing young coaches and referees.