Rio must sustain Olympics benefits

Brazil has overcome the Olympics challenge in style, but now comes the bigger challenge: to sustain the benefits ensuing from the Games. Before the mega sporting event started, many were sceptical about the country’s ability to put up a good show. The worst recession facing the nation, shooting inflation, swelling unemployment and the political upheaval caused by impeachment of the President made things tough for Brazil. The government was forced to slash the $5 billion Olympics budget between five-20 percent due to financial constraints. Concerns were also raised over the incomplete infrastructure as the Games drew near. However, in the end, everything fell into place and Rio showed to the world how odds can be beaten.
There has been massive spending on construction of Olympic arenas. Huge stadiums, swimming pools, Olympics village and hotels have come up. The advantages from this boom shouldn’t go waste. The infrastructure shouldn’t be left to wallow in neglect. They must be properly utilized. These investments can bring in more revenues if the stadiums, apartments and other Olympic projects are reused for a long time to come.
During 2008 to 2014, Rio’s overseas tourism market grew from $1.2 billion to $2.10 billion — thanks to the 2014 Football World Cup. Similarly, the Rio Olympics attracted more than 400,000 tourists. During the Olympics, influx in foreign travellers surged tourist tours in and around Rio, thereby generating huge revenues. With the golden phase over now, the tourism industry players have to devise ways to beckon more tourists to these sites. For this, they would need innovative ways to repackage tourist hubs.
A study revealed that London’s 2012 Summer Olympics cost $11.4 billion. But TV rights ($713 million), ticket sales ($988 million), corporate sponsorships ($1.45 billion) and other receipts raised only $3.27 billion. Even though the actual figures are yet to be out, Rio must have earned substantially more TV broadcasting money than London and Athens — which held the 2004 Games. However, it is not time to gloat over the profits. Rio must channelize these revenues towards social and environmental schemes. Today, the poor local communities in Rio are feeling left out as most of the Olympic events were held in the wealthier south and west sides of the city. It would be prudent to invest the revenues from Olympics in making favelas crime-free and strengthening the security in these unsafe pockets. The money should also be spent to recuperate the damaged mangrove habitats near the Olympic Park and in building wastewater treatment plants. Such steps will help in checking alienation of local population from the development that the city has
undergone.
Rio Olympic projects included extending the Metro, building a light railway and setting up a cross-city dedicated bus lane network. A modern tramway today runs from domestic airport. According to a report, in 2017, some 63 percent of the Rio population would be able to commute using public transport. This is no mean achievement. The challenge now is to ensure that the transport infrastructure is maintained well and the benefits of Olympics extended to all and sundry.