Ministry unaware of MZ youth centre costs

Despite conducting two groundbreaking ceremonies for the construction of Mzuzu Youth Centre (MYC), the Ministry of Labour, Youth, Sports and Manpower Development says it does not know how much the project will cost.

President Peter Mutharika and former line minister Grace Chiumia promised to ensure that the project, earlier estimated at K600 million, commenced by August 2015.

But now Capital Hill says the Chinese government, which pledged to finance the project, will decide the cost of the facility whose delayed construction was launched by Chiumia two years ago and the incumbent Henry Mussa last year.

In an interview on Monday, the ministry’s spokesperson Simon Bvundula said: “The value of the project will only be known after the bills of quantities have been worked on.”

Government has allocated K50 million for making access roads and clearing the five-hectare site.

Youth and Society executive director Charles Kajoloweka has accused government of not being transparent on the type of structures to be constructed, the commencement of the project and the money government has wasted so far.

The youth centre has been a ghost project for over six years even though Parliament allocated K30 million for the project in 2010, a further K20 million in 2011 and K200 million in 2014. n