Over one hundred abandoned buildings in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro are ready to collapse due to poor maintenance, the Associated Press reported yesterday. The publication quoted Agostinho Guerreiro, president of Crea, a public body speaking on behalf of the engineering profession, as saying: “These buildings aren’t necessarily going to fall down next week or next month - I don’t want to cause public panic - but these one hundred or so buildings are definitely in bad enough shape that action is required. We need a public planning strategy that takes these buildings into account and takes concrete steps to preserve them.”

The issues may not be immediate but with the Brazil 2014 World Cup on the horizon, the world is watching Brazil and its preparations to host such a prestigious global event. An estimated £550m has been invested into constructing and redeveloping stadiums capable of meeting the demands of the 2014 World Cup and a £2bn infrastructure development scheme was unveiled in 2009 to regenerate airports in ten venue cities. Money is being poured into sporting arenas and basic infrastructure however little has been said about investment into less high-profile developments which are in dire need of attention.