Residents of Hawassa City have a reason to smile as they will host Ethiopia’s Walia Ibex last AFCON 2017 qualifier against Seychelles in September.

The match initially scheduled for the Capital’s Addis Ababa Stadium, will now be staged at the Hawassa International Stadium.

The newly built stadium was given a clean bill of health by CAF inspectors who toured the facility a month a go paving way for it’s first international event.

Hawassa hosted eight group A and B matches of the 2015 CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup that saw the 60,000 capacity masterpiece fill to the rafters.

It adds to three the number of approved stadiums in the country after Addis and Bahirdar Stadiums.

Bahirdar hosted Walia’s 2-1 win over Lesotho in March; a tie watched by a record 100,000 plus fans. The Group “J” action headed to Addis Stadium for Algeria fixture in the same month that ended in a 3-3 draw.

Addis Stadium playing surface has lately become unplayable due to heavy rains, and it is earmarked for a facelift.

@bonfaceosano