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rganizers in Palembang said they are confident that the athletes’ village dormitory will be ready for the 26th South East Asian Games (SEA Games) by early November.

Indonesian SEA Games Organizing Committee director (INASOC) for Palembang Muddai Madang said they had begun installing household equipment, including furniture and electronic devices for the dorms, which should be completed by the end of this month.

“We have placed items in the dorms such as beds, desks and chairs, but I don’t have the exact numbers,” Muddai said Friday as quoted by Antara news agency.

“Indonesian athletes are scheduled to reach Palembang in early November in order to have time to adapt to the venues. They will surely be staying at the dorm by that time,” he said.

Palembang organizer in-charge for venues Musni Wijaya admitted that procurement of furniture had been conducted in an unnecessarily late manner.

“The tender process for furniture procurement was held in early October. We therefore could only setup the furniture at the end of the month,” said Musni, adding that the dorm had been scheduled to be ready for use by September, when some test events began as part of preparation for the Games.

“The [state] budget allocation for these requirements was only settled in mid-September, leading to delays,” added Musni.

Musni said that the Palembang organizers had procured certain items that were not covered by the state budget.

“We had to conduct a direct appointment to procure things such as plates, forks and spoons, towels, doormats, trash bins and even laundry clotheslines,” he said.

The athletes’ village, which is located in the Jakabaring Sports Complex, will accommodate about 2,300 athletes and officials.

About 5,000 athletes and officials are expected to take part in the Games.

In Subang, West Java, the venue for the cycling road race, preparations for the individual time trials and team time trials still appeared to be behind schedule, despite that the competition is expected to be one of the biggest events at the Games.

A 300-meter and another 200-meter section of the 168-kilometer track remained damaged, while other areas are covered by mud. The road race is set to begin in Padalarang and end at the Tangkuban Perahu tourism site.

Cycling organizer Heriyanto said that he had requested support for repairs from the West Java administration. “We are waiting for a response,” Heriyanto told Antara.

Hariyanto said that immediate repair work was needed before the Games, which are set to run from Nov. 11-22.