BTC sponsors carnival and bands with 1.8 million

Wed, Apr 19th 2017, 11:46 PM

Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC), with only two weeks before Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, yesterday formally sponsored the carnival to the tune of $1 million in cash and kind, and took an extra bold step by sponsoring five bands over three years at $800,000.
BTC CEO Leon Williams made the presentation to the Bahamas National Festival Commission (BNFC) and the carnival bands yesterday afternoon at BTC's headquarters.
Now, not only is BTC the title partner for Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, but Bahamas Masqueraders, Enigma Bahamas, Reckless Pirates, Euphoria Madness and Xtasy Bahamas are expected to be funded about $50,000 per year for the next three years.
For the first year of Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, carnival groups were given seed money by the BNFC to start their carnival bands. Last year the BNFC gave the bands nothing, though they continously asked for support for the second year. This year BTC has stepped in to fill that void for five of the 21 bands.
"Whenever BTC adopts a cause, we get involved from start to finish," said Williams in a BTC press release.
"Three years ago, we believed Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival possessed the right mix to become a successful annual event. In the initial stage, we took a huge step of faith, at a time when no one else would sponsor the event and invested $1 million. Three years later and we are still supporting the Bahamas National Festival Commission in its efforts.
"This year we've now invested $800,000 directly into the groups. We know that this will make for an exciting Road Fever Parade."
The band owners all expressed their gratitude for BTC's assistance.
Williams added that BTC has also pumped thousands of dollars into technical infrastructure to ensure that the Cultural Village will be accessible to all Bahamians - even the ones who do not attend the carnival's concerts. He revealed that Bahamians will be able to watch the concert series at the Cultural Village live on their smartphones through the company's free Flow TV application.
"We want our customers and patrons of the event to be able to share every moment without interruptions and as such we continue to upgrade and advance our equipment at the festival site," he said.
"This year I'm proud to state that residents that are not able to attend the actual event will be able to share in the moment through BTC TV live on Flow TV."

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian

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