Brazil Government To Spend $800M On Security For World Cup, 20% Higher Than 2010

The Brazilian government "has spent" 1.9B reais ($800M) on security for the FIFA World Cup, according to Benjamin Parkin of the RIO TIMES. In total, 170,000 security personnel will be available, integrating state and federal police forces with 57,000 members of the armed forces. This is 20% "higher than the total" of 140,000 agents for South Africa’s 2010 World Cup, where approximately 500M reais was spent on security -- approximately a quarter of what has been spent by Brazil. Key to Brazil’s security project for the event "has been the integration of security institutions and systems," on which the government has spent 728M reais ($318M). This is exemplified by the Integrated Centers of Command and Control which have been built in all 12 host cities "to coordinate security operations." Some critics argue that, despite the CICCs, "too much spending has been focused on weaponry instead of better-placed investments in investigation and intelligence" (RIO TIMES, 6/3).