The Sunday News
Roberta Katunga Senior Business Reporter
TRINIDAD and Tobago, one of the wealthiest countries in the Caribbean area, is forging multi-partnerships with Zimbabwe on a broader policy and collaboration particularly in the area of cultural preservation and heritage, a senior official has said.Trinidad and Tobago Arts and Multi-Culturalism Minister, Dr Lincoln Douglas, said his country was developing cultural and economic relations with Zimbabwe with the first step being offering the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry 10 scholarships for Zimbabweans to study carnival arts in their universities.
The two countries have minimal economic relations.
“We have a couple of degree programmes that we have developed in our universities in festival arts, creative arts and cultural studies and we are offering 10 scholarships for students to come and study as part of our ongoing relationship with Zimbabwe and showing our support for the work that this country is doing,” said Dr Douglas.
He said carnivals were serious business as apart from providing social benefits, they had a tourism and economic value and could prove to be a real boost to small industries and businesses.
“Carnivals bring people together; they celebrate together and learn to trust each other. Apart from this, the economic values of carnivals are great. In Trinidad and Tobago we have 25 industries that are supported by this concept from steel makers, costume makers, those who sell artefacts and food among other things.
Besides all that, there are all the people that have come into the country, all Zimbabweans living abroad will come back home for a time of celebration and this will bring in a huge amount of revenue and boost to the economy,” he said.
According to Minister Douglas, Trinidad alone has 1,5 million people and welcomes 40 000 visitors during the carnival season.
Trinidad and Tobago brought in a large contingent of steel drum players, musicians and singers to participate in the Harare International Carnival that was held from 16- 25 May. The country is ranked second in carnivals around the world with art forms that resemble African culture developed out of slavery.
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister, Engineer Walter Mzembi, confirmed the relationship with Trinidad and Tobago and the 10 scholarships.
“I can confirm that they have offered us 10 scholarships for students to study in the area of creative arts and carnivals and associated disciplines. We are very grateful to the Minister of Arts and Multiculturalism who took his time to lead in person the Trinidad and Tobago delegation,” said Cde Mzembi.
He said Zimbabwe was now proceeding to build mutual understandings with the Caribbean country.
“Trinidad and Tobago is a reincarnation of a slave state and have many memories that they want to capture in slave routes together with us through Ghana and we have been discussing this and also to help us in the area of really fine-tuning our carnival,” he said.
Cde Mzembi said the policy objective of developing gross national happiness was achieved and said he hoped it would be sustained as people needed to take moments away from their recurrent problems, expenditure and celebrate life.
He said high blood pressure (hypertension) was now killing more people than any other disease in the country.
“This speaks to the need for our people to recreate and escape from busy schedules. In tourism and hospitality, the aspect of hospitality is a host of recreation as a policy together with the Ministry of Sports, Arts and Recreation through the recreation commission,” said Cde Mzembi.
He said his Ministry had recently formed a partnership with the Sports and Recreation Commission on sport tourism.
According to Cde Mzembi the carnival concept would be spread to Bulawayo and other cities as officials were already in talks with relevant stakeholders.
“This concept must now migrate to other cities and it will be modelled and named after their cities,” he said.
During a courtesy visit by the Trinidad and Tobago delegation to the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry ‘s offices, Minister Mzembi hinted on the formation of a carnival commission like in other countries.
Commenting on that remark on the sidelines of the carnival street march, Minister Mzembi said a thorough audit of the successes and weaknesses of the carnival would be done before any decision was made.
“We will obviously strengthen the structure for more effective and efficient delivery. It must be a structure that answers the enabler role of other sectors and ministries into this concept. The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority has done a tremendous job on the carnival but I am aware of the headaches they went through in trying to secure goodwill and support of other ministries and sectors, it was very difficult.
I want to strengthen the structures so that they do not experience these headaches going into the future and so that they secure a 100 percent buy-in from other collaborative sectors and ministries,” he said.
The 2014 carnival was held under the theme ‘Celebrating Our Diversity’.
