2023-05-08 21:36:40
The coordinator of the Festivities in the city of Benguela, Adilson Gonçalves, said today that the 2023 edition already corresponds to the organization’s expectations, as it is more inclusive and participatory.
With the enclosure adjacent to the National Stadium of Ombaka as the main stage, the festivities of the 406th anniversary of the city of Benguela, to be celebrated on the 17th of May, are a reality since the weekend, with sports, cultural and health and gastronomy fairs.
These events are livening up the urban center and several neighbourhoods, especially in zone B, on the outskirts.
Thus, the Deputy Governor for the Technical and Infrastructure area justifies carrying out activities in the most remote areas of the municipality of Benguela with the need to ensure greater involvement of all citizens, in fact, a promise made at the launch of this edition.
“We have already been to the Viva Paz neighborhood (zone B) and this week we will do the same with another neighborhood to be indicated, in zone A”, recalled the coordinator of the festive activities of the also known as the city of Acácias Rubras, speaking to ANGOP.
On the musical side, he says that the primacy falls to the artists of the local square, among singers and comedians who perform for the public, on the stage of “Walale 406 – Maio é Benguela”, on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, being an opportunity to publicize your job.
“We are giving a very special priority to local artists who even opened the musical stage and we are going to know other names, from the most to the least known”, he reinforced.
According to him, in general, on Saturdays, the stage is reserved for the performance of a renowned musician at national level, as was the case of Matias Damásio, on the 6th, with other shows with Yola Semedo and Anselmo Ralph being planned.
Carousel and beach soccer among the innovations
In terms of innovation, “an excellent children’s amusement park stands out, where, as the source assumes, there is everything for the enjoyment of children during the month, contrary to last year when activities were more focused on adults.
As access is free, except for the “mandatory” purchase of a telephone recharge card, the deputy governor challenges parents and guardians to take their children to the carousel available to children outside the Ombaka Stadium .
“But outside the stadium we have more services and it is being a very inclusive party”, he asserts, adding that this strategy of integrating the children’s amusement park with the handicraft and business square in the catering area, with more than 55 fairs , aims to make activities more versatile for Benguela families.
On the other hand, he made it known that a beach soccer field was installed next to the Ombaka Stadium, another innovation compared to 2022.
For now, he pointed out that there are many requests from people from other provinces interested in setting up a camp on the spot, taking into account the services available.
For the deputy governor of Benguela, everything is taken care of, from buses for transporting residents at subsidized prices (between 50 and 100 kwanzas), from accessible points in coastal cities, such as Benguela, Lobito, Catumbela and Baía Farta .
That is why he reaffirmed that the Benguela festivities commission prepared itself at all levels and proof of this is the way in which the Ombaka Stadium is decorated, arousing the curiosity and attention of residents and visitors.
“Many people want to camp at Ombaka Stadium. They don’t want to leave because it is highly inviting, the days are very inviting and the nights are busy, “she emphasized.
And he “boasts” that all the work was done to provide this quality of service to citizens and visitors during the month of May.
A little of history
The effective foundation of Benguela would take place with an expedition led by Manuel Cerveira Pereira, captain general of Angola, who left Luanda on April 11, 1617, at the head of a naval fleet composed of 130 men. The expedition headed south, along the coast, to Baía das Vacas (or Baía de Santo António), which it reached on 17 May of the same year.
In the bay, a fortress was founded that would later receive the name of Fort of São Filipe de Benguela, which was the base nucleus of the village that would immediately become the capital of the new Portuguese domain in the south of Angola, the Captaincy of Benguela, a name preserved between 1617 and 1779, when it was replaced by the District of Benguela.
Initially, the locality emerged around the fort and was named Ombaka, until, after the celebration of the friendship and trade treaty between Portugal and the Kingdom of Benguela, it was called Benguela.
The municipality of Benguela has a territorial extension of two thousand and one hundred square kilometers. It is the most populous in the province and population projections for 2018 point to 623,777 inhabitants. JH/CRB
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