The Roma Campus of the National University of Lesotho (NUL) will be the Games Village for the coming African Union Sports Council Region 5 Games (AUSC 5 Games) to be held in Lesotho starting from 3rd to 12th December, 2021.
The Games are organized by the governments of the African Union as part of promoting unity, peace, youth development and sports. These are mandatory games as Member States have agreed to participate by hosting them on a rotational basis, every two years.
It is Lesotho’s turn to host and NUL (as a public institution) has been identified as the main Games Village. NUL will host approximately 2000 people including athletes and officials at the NUL and Pius XII residences.
The AUSC 5 Games Protocol has safety and welfare standards to be met by the hosting country. One requirement is for the Games Village to be availed 5 days before the games, during the games and 5 days after the games. This means that the campus should be availed to the games organisers between 25th November and 17th December, 2021.
The Government of Lesotho, through the Ministry of Gender and Youth, Sports and Recreation has taken up the responsibility to renovate the halls of residence, the refectory and the clinic here at NUL. No renovations will be done on the sports grounds as these will only be used for practice sessions by the athletes. The NUL Community and Roma Community are therefore advised that NUL does not have any control over the hiring of contractors and employees for the construction work.
The renovations ought to have been carried out in a staggered manner since June 2021 but the Memorandum of Understanding between NUL and Government of Lesotho was only signed at the end of October, 2021.
Implications of the Games on the Life on Campus
Teaching and learning will continue online.
For security purposes at the Games Village, the campus will belong to the AUSC 5 Games during this time and, therefore, movement in and out of the campus will be restricted.
Students: There will be no students on campus. Students will be expected to officially vacate the campus on Friday, 19 November, 2021 to give a few days for cleaning before the 25th November and come back on 2nd January, 2022.
Staff and Families: Staff will be allowed in and out of campus to their offices using different gates from those used by the athletes. Those staff members and their families living on campus will be allowed to their residences using other routes not close to or leading into the students’ halls of residence, the refectory and clinic as these will be occupied by the athletes.
Roma Community: During this time, the thorough-fares will not be accessible to those who usually pass through the University gates to the villages surrounding the campus.
