Bridgetown.
Prime Minister Freundel Stuart urged Barbadian businesses to increase their sponsorship of the Crop Over Festival.
Delivering the feature address at launch of this year's festival at the Hilton Hotel yesterday, Stuart said government was limited in the financial support that is could give to the island's major cultural event and called for an increase in sponsorship from the private sector.
He said that sponsors should not see their sponsorship of the festival as a revenue earning opportunity, but as a means of giving back to the communities which through their patronage have contributed to the success of the business sector.
"Support for culture and the arts in Barbados must ultimately benefit the viability of local businesses" the Prime Minister said.
He added that the government was prepared to make a contribution to the festival as is practical, given its other commitments to national development and the prevailing economic climate.
