Philipsburg;---The incoming board of the St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) met with Commissioner of Culture Maria Buncamper-Molanus and Commissioner of Finance Roy Marlin on Friday to chart a way forward in the future development of St. Maarten's premier cultural event. Both parties agreed that the meeting was a fruitful one with the Commissioners pledging government's support of the foundation.The new board of the foundation is well underway with preparations for Carnival 2009. "They recognize that it is rather late in the process in terms of organizing, but these are people, volunteers, who are not new-comers to the process of organizing Carnival, so I am sure that they will be successful. The Island Government will do everything we can to ensure that they are," Buncamper-Molanus and Marlin said in a joint statement.
Various ideas were discussed not only about Carnival 2009, but carnival in the long term as well. Both parties agreed said that the public and stakeholders of Carnival will be updated on every aspect once discussions and decisions have reached that point.
Buncamper and Marlin also took note of statements by stakeholders in the media indicating that they would be supporting the new members of the SCDF. "In the spirit of Carnival and for the love of our culture we are looking forward to everyone involved in every facet of carnival working together professionally. It is re-assuring to the public to know that we can put months of controversy behind us," they said.
Recognizing that a successful Carnival year depends in large part on available finances, the Commissioners acknowledged the role government has to play in this area but took the opportunity to urge the business community to get behind Carnival.
"There is no time to waste. We have to move post haste. Almost every business on St. Maarten benefits from Carnival in one way or the other. It is not too much to ask to give back to our Carnival. It is the biggest event of the year and brings thousands of people together. Two weeks of festivities unmatched in the Northeastern Caribbean. But it needs financial assistance to survive and flourish. So we're hoping the business community will play their part in ensuring this success," the Commissioners concluded.