B

ali Governor Made Mangku Pastika has declared that Bali is ready to host the upcoming APEC Summit, saying that all venues, infrastructure and security systems had been prepared well.

'€œEverything is ready. The airport, the roads, the hotels, all venues, the organizer, as well as security. I think everything has been prepared well,'€ Pastika said Tuesday.

The deputy chairman for infrastructure with the APEC organizer was also positive, stating, '€œThe hotels have completed their renovation projects. No more problems. We'€™re just waiting for the event.'€ The summit will take place in Nusa Dua from Oct. 1'€“8.

Made Santha, second assistant to the provincial administration, said that 14 hotels in the Nusa Dua enclave were ready to host the event, including three that would be meeting venues for the summit: Bali International Convention Centre (BICC) of The Westin Resort Nusa Dua; Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center (BNDCC), and the Sofitel hotel.

'€œMost of the meetings would be held in the Sofitel hotel. The heads of state meeting will be held there. I'€™ve been repeatedly check the preparations,'€ said Santha, who is in charge of infrastructure preparation ahead of APEC.

The Sofitel is a new hotel designed for the APEC Summit, with its official opening scheduled for this month.

Santha added that many other hotels around Nusa Dua were also ready to accommodate APEC-related guests, as well as to host several sideline events.

The 40 hotels and villas in Nusa Dua enclave, Tanjung Benoa and the surrounding area will host hundreds of high-profile delegates, including state leaders, ministers, diplomats and high-ranking officials of global organizations and CEOs of international corporations.

During the APEC Summit, as many as 21 heads of state and government, 46 ministers, 5,250 economic leaders and around 3,000 journalists from across the world are expected to be in Bali.

Meanwhile, there will be around 182 preliminary APEC meetings held ahead of the summit, attended by around 100,000 delegates.

Director of marketing and communication for The Westin Resort Nusa Dua, Dewi Anggraini, said that the hotel was prepared. '€œWe have already prepared things from many aspects, from the security systems to the facilities.'€

The Westin Resort Nusa Dua has recently completed renovation of its convention center facilities, which now have a 2,500-person capacity, and built an additional 99 rooms, bringing its total to 433 rooms. Several preliminary APEC meetings have been held at the hotel over the last few weeks.

The hotel is now hosting the Miss World pageant for around one week.

'€œOur security system has also been verified by Bali Police,'€ Dewi said.

Ahead of the APEC Summit, Bali Police and the Association of Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants (PHRI) Bali branch conducted a security verification process on all 40 hotels involved in the event.

Many infrastructure projects have also been implemented on the island for the summit. Among these is the Dewa Ruci under-pass '€” which cost Rp 148 billion (US$13.3 million) from the state budget '€” and started operation in May this year.

The island'€™s airport is also being renovated and expanded at a cost of Rp 2.8 trillion, and the Benoa-Ngurah Rai-Nusa Dua toll road has been built at a cost of Rp 2.5 trillion. The toll road and the underpass are expected to help alleviate the severe traffic congestion choking Bali'€™s main tourist routes.

'€œThe airport only needs some finishing touches on the architecture. Meanwhile, the toll road is yet to be officially opened. The opening ceremony is awaiting the president'€™s schedule. The toll road is
actually ready to begin operation. So, overall, everything is ready,'€ Santha said.