--- Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare says his country will need $1billion Solomon dollars (USD 128, 350,000) to host a successful 2023 Pacific Games.
Solomon Islands won the bid to host the 2023 Games following a close tussle against Tahiti at the second and final day of the Pacific Games Council (PGC) General Assembly in Port Vila, Vanuatu.
Tahiti in their bid made excellent and professional presentations with most of the facilities used in previous games to be upgraded for 2023 should they win.
Solomon Islands on its part came with a high powered delegation led by PM Sogavare, the Deputy PM, Sports Minister, the Opposition leader and the Mayor of Honiara and was banking on the support of their Melanesian brothers and support from the north Pacific.
“We were united in our bid,” said PM Sogavare despite breaching a clause in their bid document.
“The first thing is to look at the infrastructure and we’ll need 200,000 dollars a year or one billion Solomons dollars to host a successful games.
“I expect our venues to be ready by 2021,” he quipped.
Re-elected PGC president Vidya Lakhan was happy the general assembly was over.
“For me it was two days of exciting times because it was a general assembly, it could be very boring, but when you look at the decisions, the outcomes that was taken, for me it was I think very, very exciting.
“Apart from the election of two new vice-presidents onto the board of the PGC and then the determination on the host for 2023, going to Solomon Islands hosting a major games for the first time, so all has been very positive.”
At the conclusion of the assembly delegates were taken on a tour of the venues for next year’s Pacific Mini Games in Vanuatu.
The Commonwealth Games Federation will be meeting today.