Fernando Maletti: ‘Infrastructure works finished by early August’

In partnership with

Radio Gol

·1 July 2026

Fernando Maletti: ‘Infrastructure works finished by early August’

Fernando Maletti, Sports Secretary of the province of Santa Fe, spoke with ADN Gol as part of the countdown to the South American Games that will take place this year in the Province of Santa Fe, providing details on the final stages of the construction work for these games and the expectations generated in the province by hosting an event of such magnitude.

Status of the works and test events

Completion deadlines: Regarding the infrastructure timeline, Maletti assured: “We’re going to have everything ready by the end of July; in the first days of August we’ll already have the... the infrastructure works finished.”
Fine-tuning operations: He explained the importance of holding events before the main competition: “We want to hold all the events before the games... so we can test absolutely all the operations... test all the volunteers, test... well, make sure it all works, that the lights turn on and off and that the door opens and closes. Above all, uh, properly test all the stadiums.”
Legacy for the clubs: He mentioned the positive impact of the works on local institutions: “We also have 14 clubs that are going to be involved in hosting different... different sports disciplines, and they also had to be upgraded because two months ago the, uh, inspectors came—if you want to call them that—uh, to inspect and say, well, uh, here we need a bathroom, here we need a boat ramp, here we need a locker room, here we need a press room, so those works are being carried out, which is also a legacy that the clubs will keep.”

Logistics and the South American Village

Dual housing purpose: He justified the construction of the villages given the limited traditional lodging capacity and detailed their later use: “The hotel capacity wasn’t going to be enough to host everyone, so it serves a double purpose: housing the athletes during the games, and after the games, within 15 days, the homes have to be handed over and there will be lotteries, they will be sold... well, each city will find the best way to handle it.”
Available spaces: He indicated the volume of remaining housing solutions for the province: “There are about 2,500 spaces that are going to be offered in Rosario, Santa Fe, and Rafaela, and the truth is that housing is a very great need for the people of Santa Fe, right?”

Economic impact and state policy

Return on investment: He firmly maintained that the event does not represent a loss of money for public coffers: “This is an investment... the return on the investment, uh, is one to four; the return for Santa Fe is going to be fourfold, and the public will see it directly... the hotel owner will see it, the kiosk owner will see it, the cab driver will see it, uh, the person who sold the bricks will see it, the person who sold the concrete, the person who sold the sheet metal, the truck that transported the earth.”
Strategic continuity plan: He expressed the desire for sports guidelines to outlast whichever government is in office: “That’s why we want to leave behind a strategic provincial sports plan so that it becomes a state policy and, whoever comes next, uh, this can continue to be worked on.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.