Rio's financial woes before Olympic Games

by John Curnow on 19 Jun 2016 First it was Zika, and as if that was not big enough of an issue. Then there were the super-bugs that have infected the beaches and also the water courses where Rowing, Triathlon, Sailing and other sports will be held. Before that there was the impeachment of the President, Dilma Rousseff, adding more politics to the equation. Now as the country grapples with recession, the news that they are in deep water fiscally is probably surprising to no one at all.

The acting governor of Rio de Janeiro State, Francisco Dornelles, has declared a state of financial disaster so as to be able to honour its commitments to the Games. That they have scarce resources following on from a dip in revenues from taxes and oil royalties. 'The financial crisis has brought several difficulties in essential public services and it could cause the total collapse of public security, health care, education, urban mobility and environmental management', official documentation reports.

The State of Rio is also very much behind many of the key Olympic projects and also have to pay for State Police, an extended metro and the aforementioned clean waters for athletes. I that been reported that Dornelles had asked the country's acting President, Michel Temer, for nearly $900 million in emergency funds for the state government, but a decision was not announced.

The extent of the fiscal woes includes hospitals being taken over by the city, so as to pay the doctors, and for many public workers to receive other entitlements. There are reports that some police stations have been taking donations of simple necessities, such as toilet paper!

The 2016 Summer Olympic Games will be held in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 5-21. Mauricio Savarese's original and full story appeared in Associated Press