Sports Minister Justin Tkatchenko has assured that the new stadiums are available for the benefit of the different sports.
Tkatchenko brushed aside recent media reports of the facilities being too expensive and not available for the people to use.
He said PNG is lucky to have these facilities that are for the people, including the grassroots and to ensure that the people have access to these facilities all the time.
“We are building these facilities for our people to use for our local sports so at the end of the day, the facilities are for the people and they will be available for the people at all times,” he said.
He said that it is also important to note that the facilities must have money to maintain them to the highest standard.
Tkatchenko added that the three main stadiums, Sir Hubert Murray, Sir John Guise and the National Football Stadium are as good as anything built overseas.
The stadiums all have capacities of 15,000 seats and Hubert Murray will have 20,000 seats when it’s completed at the end of next year.
“We are going to have some of the best sporting facilities not only in the Pacific but also in the region.
“We want to promote PNG as the sporting hub in the region so that international and Oceania events can be hosted here,” Tkatchenko added.
He made reference to hosting the three pool matches of the Rugby World Cup 2017 and the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup.