The Sunday Mail
Organisers of the Harare International Carnival (HIC) have assured Zimbabweans that the show will go ahead, despite there being no firm date for the 2015 edition yet.
FLASHBACK. . . Colourful processions during the Harare International Carnival 2013
Repeated changes of the carnival dates by the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority and the Harare City Council indicate organises are facing challenges in hosting HIC.
The issue of funding is understood to be the major stumbling block.
A mountain of debt dating back two years when the carnival was launched points to fundraising constraints.
Consequently, the carnival is set to run for three days down from 10 days. A top ZTA official said things were not going according to plan.
The ZTA was for the greater part of last week unable to confirm if funding had been secured.
There have been calls for the ZTA to decentralise organising the carnival and for the authority to assume a custodial role.
In countries where carnivals have been a raging success, it is the private sector and not governments or state agencies that have driven the events.
The ZTA tried this last year by giving rights to different private companies to organise various events that constituted the full course of the carnival programme. But the move did not yield satisfactory results for the authority.
Some promoters charged exorbitant entrance fees and refused to honour carnival accreditation badges, resulting in the authority taking back full control.
ZTA head of corporate affairs Sugar Chagonda said, “We selected a couple of promoters that will be part of the main carnival. Nonetheless, we will also have other events outside the main fête days.
“Also take note that the carnival days have been moved with the famous street party now set to be held on September 26.
“HIC is about destination marketing … The Harare City Council is our partner. Apart from availing streets for the carnival, they will also help us welcome visitors at the same time the event will market the city for them.
“There has been a good response so far from our associates and partners. Indeed, we are facing challenges in organising the event because of the prevailing economic squeeze but everything will come into place. As we speak we are in the process of inviting countries that we want to be part of proceedings.”
Initially the carnival was supposed to be held in May but it was moved to early September and now to the last week of that month.
This publication is reliably informed that this latest date is not the official final position and may still change.
Government has provided a third of the budget of the first two carnivals. Of the US$300 000 that the ZTA requested this year, it has received US$100 000.
Last year, it was reported that the 10-day event cost the ZTA close to US$900 000 with Government availing US$50 000 of the promised US$200 000.
A huge chunk of the funds from Treasury were used to host visitors, covering their accommodation and meals.
The private sector helped settle some of the outstanding debt.
Zimbabwe borrowed the carnival concept from countries like Brazil, the Seychelles, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, where they are big business, earning the countries millions of dollars annually.
HIC 2014 featured local dancers and bands, Brazilian samba dancers, and groups from Trinidad and Tobago, Malawi, Kenya, Egypt, Namibia, Ethiopia and South Africa, among other countries.
