There is less than a month to go until Carnival and so far it is not known how much will be made available for the celebrations in Luanda. Manuel Gonçalves, Luanda's provincial director of culture, tourism, youth and sport, quoted by Opaís newspaper, said 185 million kwanzas are expected to be made available for Carnival in the capital, but left the caveat that the figures advanced are only an estimate, as the amount is dependent on the money raised from sponsors.
He also revealed that of these 185, 60 million should be for the groups that will participate in the festivities. However, he did not put forward a specific date for the money to be handed over.
Despite the difficulties, he assured that the organization of the festivities is being done: "We started with the process of recording the songs. There's a lot of work that the groups are doing regardless of what the financial difficulties that affect the organisation of Carnival itself are".
Manuel Gonçalves' statements came on the sidelines of the debate promoted by the Ministry of Culture to evaluate Carnival over the next five years.
In the same debate, Inácio Domingos, president of the group União 17 de Setembro, said that the state plays a crucial role in the celebration of Carnival. If the State does not finance the festivities the Carnival will die. "If the state follows the Carnival, why doesn't it give up the values early? What you see in the Marginal of Luanda is not done in 15 days," he said.
