News
Mpuma community to benefit from 2010 venture
22 July - The construction of the Mbombela Stadium in Mpumalanga is taking place on 118 hectares of land which has recently been restored to the Matsafeni community.
World Cup's green legacy for Joburg
22 July - More trees, clean rivers and green playing fields are some of the long-lasting benefits from the 2010 Fifa World Cup™ that Joburg’s residents will enjoy.
See you in 2010 Madiba: Fifa
21 July - Fifa President Sepp Blatter has promised to see former South African President Nelson Mandela at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa™.
Eskom engages municipalities for 2010
18 July - An Eskom project team is working with the metro and municipal electricity departments to ensure the reliability of electricity supply to the stadiums, broadcasting centres, base camps and venues for the 2010 Fifa World Cup™, the power utility said in its annual report released on Thursday.
Nelson Mandela - SA's 2010 envoy
18 July - "The world cup will help unify people, if there is one thing in this planet that has the power to bind people together it is soccer."
Gauteng ahead of schedule for 2010
17 July - Gauteng is ahead of schedule with the construction of all host stadia ahead of the 2010 Fifa World Cup™.
Port Elizabeth to hold 2010 security exercise
16 July - The army, navy, police and airforce are set to descend on Port Elizabeth later in July to conduct a training exercise ahead of the 2010 World Cup, police said on Wednesday.
Durban's Moses Mabhida to be a year-round event
15 July - Durban has planned ahead to ensure that it's R2.6-billion Moses Mabhida Stadium is not only a single code sporting facility, but a sustainable, multi-function events theatre promising to attract people 365 days a year.
Volunteering open to all SA residents
15 July - The Local Organising Committee (LOC) says volunteering for the 2009 Fifa Confederations Cup™ is open to everyone who is a legal resident of South Africa.
World Cup readiness test for Mpumalanga
11 July -The Cosafa Senior Challenge Cup, which will see countries from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) battling it out, will also be a test for Mpumalanga’s preparations towards hosting the 2010 Fifa World™ Cup matches.
2010 final venue wows Fifa
11 July - Fifa Secretary General Jerome Valcke says he was very impressed with his first visit to the iconic Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
700 days left to 2010 Fifa World Cup in SA
10 July - With 700 days left to the kickoff of the 2010 Fifa World Cup™ to be hosted in Africa for the first time, South Africa has made considerable strides to ensure that the World Cup will be a resounding success.
South Africans heed call for volunteers
10 July - The Local Organising Committee (LOC) have reported a resounding response to their call for South Africans to volunteer during the 2009 Confederations Cup™ to be held in South Africa.
22 April 2008
Nasrec gets R120m upgrade for 2010
Bathandwa Mbola
Johannesburg – More than R120-million has been set aside to upgrade the Nasrec precinct south of Johannesburg’s city centre to support the hosting of the International Broadcast Centre (IBC) during the 2010 Fifa World Cup™.
Officially announced on Monday the upgrading of the precinct is scheduled to start in May, which will see the area be transformed into a world class centre over the next two years.
"The IBC will be the pulse and the nerve centre for all TV operations during the 2010 Fifa World Cup. Though a sophisticated network it will be linking the venues in South Africa to the rest of our football family all over the globe.
“This way it will also create a legacy, far beyond the event in terms of telecommunication infrastructure for the country,” said Fifa President Joseph Sepp Blatter in a video message to guests attending the function.
Johannesburg was among the country's three cities that bid for the right to be the nerve centre for all TV and radio operations during the tournament. Cape Town and Durban were the other two bidding cities.
Speaking during the event, Johannesburg Executive Mayor Amos Masondo said the money will be used mainly to rent and upgrade the required halls and facilities from the Expo Centre.
“In addition the city will provide various services relating to electricity installation, security and monitoring, waste removal, health and transport.”
The city approved the Nasrec precinct as a development node to bridge the apartheid spatial planning gap between the south and the north of Johannesburg in 2001.
“This has resulted in among others, the private sector partnering with the city in investing R1 billion in the Nasrec precinct for the development of 500 residential units and a four star hotel,” Mayor Masondo said.
Nasrec, one of the city’s oldest and largest exhibition centres, will see thousands of broadcasters from around the world based there for six weeks during June/July 2010.
During the 2006 Fifa World Cup in Germany, the IBC was set up in Munich where Germany hosted 13 400 accredited TV commentators, camera crew - members and technical staff.
The centre broadcast images and reports of the world cup to more than 120 television and radio stations in 190 countries to over 26 billion people across the world.
Similarly, the IBC to be established in Nasrec will host thousands of broadcasters from around the world for the six week duration of the world cup.
The cumulative television audience for the 2010 event in South Africa is estimated to reach 30 billion.
Communications Deputy Minister Roy Padayachee said the IBC would have the most up-to-date digital broadcast telecommunications systems available to provide for an estimated 3000 broadcast journalists during the event.
“Once completed, the satellite teleport and telecommunications infrastructure will be able to support transmission capacity of forty gigabytes per second.
“This Fifa World Cup will also be the first one broadcast in high-definition television. A dedicated network will link the ten venues and the rest of the world to the images from the 2010 Fifa World Cup,” the deputy minister said.
The IBC would become a key legacy project for business and sporting-related businesses in a safe hi-tech node which would eventually include residential, shopping and entertainment developments.
Source: BuaNews