A top business leader in Brazil is urging the government to make sure building projects for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics are completed on time.
Jose de Freitas Mascarenhas, a member of the National Industrial Confederation, said on Tuesday that Brazil's worldwide image could hinge on completing the massive infrastructure projects without major delays.
He said the situation was not critical at the moment, but he cautioned against getting complacent.
``We want assurances that the projects will be completed, that they will be on time and all resources will be available and will be well used,'' Mascarenhas said.
``We have a lot of interest in this because of the country's image. We have to feel the government will deliver. It's critical that we put on a good show in the World Cup and Olympics because they will be the image of Brazil to the world.''
Mascarenhas met with Ricardo Leyser, a Brazil government official in charge of elite sports. He said Leyser gave him confidence that projects would be completed in a timely fashion.
Still, he spoke cautiously.
``There are many things in the Brazilian bureaucracy which impede sticking to a timetable,'' Mascarenhas said.
Leyser acknowledged the slow-moving Latin American bureaucracy, but said pressure from international organizations - like FIFA and the International Olympic Committee - could help keep the construction of airports, highways and subway lines on schedule.
``In events like this, obviously there will be pressure from international bodies,'' Leyser said. ``But this is good. We have to get used to it because we will face demands right up to the last day.''
