Kuala Lumpur: The federal government will need to spend an estimated RM235 million to host the SEA Games and Asean Para Games in 2027, said youth and sports minister Hannah Yeoh.
She said the amount was part of the total estimated cost of RM700 million to organise the biennial event, which if held, would be co-hosted by the state governments.
Yeoh said several state governments had expressed willingness to collaborate. This includes Sarawak which had agreed to allocate RM350 million, half of the estimated cost, to host 18 types of sports for the SEA Games and eight types for the Asean Para Games.
She said Sabah was willing to allocate RM100.528 million to stage 11 types of sports for the SEA Games and four types for the Asean Para Games, while Penang had agreed to provide RM15 million to host billiards.
"Several other states have also written to us expressing their agreement to host the games, but do not want to provide allocations," she said during question time in the Dewan Negara today.
She was replying to senator Hisamudin Yahaya, who wanted to know the Cabinet’s decision on the organisation of the games in 2027.
Yeoh said the Cabinet would make its final decision in "the near future" after considering all related aspects, including the impact of hosting the games would have on the national economy.
In response to senator Mustafa Musa, who wanted to know if the government would provide a dedicated stadium for sepaktakraw, Yeo said her ministry had given the Malaysian Sepaktakraw Association a list of suitable stadiums managed by local authorities and state governments in the Klang Valley.
“I have told the association to first see which stadium is suitable, and we can discuss how to share the stadium.
"This is to ensure that we can save money while optimising the use of existing sports facilities," she said.
