Further cuts may be made in the budgetary allocations for Carnival 2016, says Community Development, Culture and the Arts Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly yesterday.
Yesterday, Gadsby-Dolly and new National Carnival Commission (NCC) chairman Kenny de Silva, Pan Trinbago president Keith Diaz and others toured the designated area of the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port-of-Spain, to get a first-hand view of the state of preparedness for the events.
Gadsby-Dolly said she was confident the venue would be ready in time for the national festival, which is just one month away. The parade of the bands will take place on February 8 and 9.
Many of the major Carnival events, including the Dimanche Gras, Parade of the Bands and the Panorama finals are to be staged at that venue before the culmination of the festival.
Last month, the minister stated that the 2015 budget of $314 million had been decreased to $270 million. She said then that the $44 million cut was in keeping with reducing expenditure in light of the dismal economic conditions.
Prime Minister Keith Rowley in an address to the nation last week said all ministries have been advised to cut spending on projects to be determined by seven per cent in the wake of prevailing and projected economic conditions in the country.
Gadsby-Dolly told reporters that permanent secretaries in the various ministries met “to discuss how we could further streamline our budgets with respect to the seven per cent.”
She said the further cuts were going to be addressed “in the coming weeks with respect to what changes we need to make.”
The minister said though that Carnival was “well on the way and we don’t expect substantial changes to be made.”
Asked specifically if there will be cuts, she said: “There may be.” She said the meeting in the coming days will determine exactly what would be cut.
She said despite the proposed cuts “it will be an even better Carnival because it will be their time (masqueraders) to exhale some of the stress and the stringent conditions they may be anticipating.”
She insisted that she did not think the proposed reduction in allocations “will make a very big difference in the experience for the masquerader.”
Gadsby-Dolly also said the possible threat of swine flu affecting the festival was a matter for Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh to comment on, adding she had “heard nothing to suggest we should be overly concerned.”
She said the proposed cuts would not affect security arrangements.
“When you talk about cuts in a ministry it’s really cuts where you can afford to and security is something you can’t afford to cut, you can’t afford to play with,” she added.