Qatar spending $500m a week on World Cup infrastructure projects
8 February 2017
Qatar is spending almost $500m (£400m) a week on major infrastructure projects as it prepares for the 2022 Fifa World Cup, its finance minister has said.
Ali al-Emadi expected spending to continue at that level for three to four years as new stadiums, motorways, rail links and hospitals are built.
More than $200bn (£160bn) will be spent in total by the gas-rich emirate.
But Mr Emadi denied that the plans would make the 2022 tournament the most expensive World Cup yet.
The 2014 World Cup in Brazil is reported to have cost $11bn (£8.8bn) to host, while Russia increased government spending on the 2018 World Cup by $321m to
Brazil struggled to get many of its stadiums ready, but Mr Emadi told reporters in Doha on Tuesday that Qatar had already awarded 90% of the contracts for 2022 projects and that two-thirds would be delivered within the next 24 months.
"We are giving ourselves a good chance to deliver things on time," he added. "We don't want to be in a place where we start painting when people are coming to the country."
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-38905510