Headline, March 25 2022/ ''' '' ANGOLA'S -STUDENTS- ANCHOR '' ''' : !WOW!

''' '' ANGOLA'S -STUDENTS -

 ANCHOR '' ''' : !WOW!

A PASSION : TO HAVE ALL STUDENTS OF ANGOLA join The World Students Society - for every subject in the world. !WOW! - belongs to every student of Angola, just as it belongs to every student in the world.

ANGOLANS RESTORE GLORY : IN AN IDEAL WORLD - A VIBRANT CARNIVAL would help lift up struggling neighborhoods like Cassequel. Gutters and streams around the community of tightly packed bungalows are filled with trash and mucky water, and give off a stench.

Along the craggy dirt roads, women set up wooden stands to sell fruits and vegetables. Alcohol is often the main free time activity for many, many young people.

FILIPE ZAU - ANGOLA'S MINISTER OF culture and tourism, conceded that funding was lacking. The challenge, he said, was that Carnival was no longer confined to urban centers, meaning there were more groups to support.

He said enticing more private sponsors, planning earlier and attracting foreign visitors were all part of the government's strategy to raise more revenue to bolster Carnival, which in Angola dates back a century when Angolans spontaneously took to the streets to celebrate - and to mock the Portuguese colonizers.

The singer stood in a rubble-strewn courtyard in one of the hard-knock neighborhoods of Luanda, Angola's capital, antsy as he got the performers in line for their final rehearsal before the big competition.

''United Af-ri-caaa,'' a voice hummed over a loudspeaker before a percussion heavy beat kicked in. More than half a dozen young people facing the singer, Tony do Fumo Jr., swiveled their hips and arms and stomped their feet.

The group of mostly teenagers, led by Mr. do Fumo was preparing for its inaugural performance at Carnival, a celebration - and contest for prize money - that ushers in the Christian season of Lent. Pacing with the glare of a drill sergeant, he blew a whistle and waved an arm.

The dancers froze. Another whistle and gesture, and they were back on beat, Mr. doFumo bobbing along with them.

The son of an Angolan music legend, Mr. do Fumo grew up under the tutelage of some of the country's most prominent musicians. He has performed across the world before live crowds and on television. But the pressure for this performance was unlike any he'd felt before.

ONCE a cultural highlight that seized the streets of this port city in Africa's southwest, Carnival in Luanda seems to barely register a blip these days.

The swirl of colorful, flowing costumes, semba music and hip-shaking dances that make up the Mardi Gras-like festivities are most confined over three days to a quarter-mile waterfront stretch known as Marginal.

Many attribute the event's decline to the distractions of life's daily hardships and lack of financial investment from a government stretched thin.

Enter Mr. do Fumo, 38, a semba singer who performs with an immersive passion. He is among those trying to help restore Carnival's glory and change what it means to participate in it.

Organizers have encouraged Angoloians to form groups that not only perform in the event, but also engage in social and cultural activities year around.

That's what Mr. do Fumo had in mind when, six years back, he started his Carnival group, Uniao Jovens do Prenda, or the United Youth of Prenda, named for his former neighborhood in Luanda. It qualified for the competition - and the prize money awarded to the winners - for the the first time this year.

AND he was hoping his group would win a much-needed infusion of cash to fund activities like buying wheelchairs, feeding the hungry and providing support to help young people resist gangs.

Mr. do Fumo was born with art in his DNA, while his father sang, his mother danced. But his parents died when he was just 6, and he grew up struggling, in a rough neighborhood with relatives who had few financial resources.

He has participated in Carnival since he was 8 and sees his group as a vehicle to help young people overcome difficult conditions, as he did, through culture.

''When God gives you an opportunity to get something, it's only for you,'' Mr. do Fumo said. What I get for being an artist, I share with the community. We all eat the same food.''

Shortly before Carnival, one of the group's dancers had told him her house was in dire condition. After Carnival, it collapsed, Mr. do Fumo said. So he has started raising money to buy materials to build her a new house.

''Let's go now, let's work,'' he said.

The World Students Society thanks author John Eligon.

With most respectful dedication to the Leaders, Students, Professors and Teachers of Angola and then the world.

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