World Cup 2014 Brazil - host nation in World Cup Overdrive, as preparations begin
While the 2010 World Cup fast becomes a distant memory, the soccer fans, officials and players are setting their sights on the next world cup which is set to be staged in Brazil in 2014, and the country has entered a tournament overdrive with infrastructure and development work in full flow all across the venues of the tournament.
The government has decided to take matters in its own hands, as Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva signed a bill that is aimed at reducing red tape and increase the energies on the venues that will stage the 20th edition of the most watched sporting spectacle in the world.
President Lula met with members of the government, ministers and concerned authorities in the capital city of Brasilia, announcing billions of dollars in investments in airports and seaports across the country, as the South American powerhouse winner of five world cup titles prepare for the prestigious event.
The alarm bells rang in the government circles in the country as the national budget found that most of the people involved with the task were "impressively late."
Subsequently concerns were raised by the football governing body, Federation of International Football FIFA that the country was not yet prepared for Brazil 2014, the next showcase event of the federation.
FIFA’s primary concerns were the lack of progress in the construction of stadiums and other infrastructure.
The new developments have excited the local sports Minister Orlando Silva, who thinks that the new incentives offered by the government are set to have a positive affect on the tournament preparation.
"The bill that was signed today will allow the World Cup host cities to promote financing that will bring more investments in infrastructure, transports and mobility," he said.
The bill has been pencilled down to ensure that bureaucracy is minimized as the tournament has been labelled as the top priority, while investment and financial procedures have been made easy as the approvals will come through the Development Bank, with a prime responsibility of allocating finances.
President Lula added that his government was directing all its efforts towards the tournament which will be followed by the Olympics in 2016, and the cities that are set to stage the event have to accomplish their duties.
"We are creating an exception for the cities that will host World Cup games -- they will be able to run into a larger debt so they can do the works the cities must do," he said.
The new bill is also going to help financially various development programs as an allocation of 5.5 billion reais (some 3.1 billion dollars) has been made from Lula's flagship infrastructure investment program, known as PAC.
The first recipient of the funding is the national airport authority known as the Infraero.
Besides, another staggering amount of 740 million reais (415 million dollars) is set to be used to improve seaports across the country.
Lula said his government staff is working to leave things ready for his successor, as his tenure is set to end later this year but he hopes that the government that takes over, make the World Cup as one of their top priorities as the tournament is of huge importance for the country
"We will work with love and a lot of effort. I only have five months and a few days in office, but we will work as much as we can, so who arrives in January 1 will already have things halfway solved, with less work to do," he said.
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