Rio accredits samba circles for cultural development program

Samba groups with at least two years of experience in Rio de Janeiro and local ties have until May 2nd to register for an accreditation notice.

Registrations are made online at cultura.prefeitura.rio. You must be an individual, proven samba producer or samba singer, be over 18 years old and live in Rio.

The assistant to the Coordination of Territories and Cultural Diversity of the Municipal Secretariat of Culture (SMC), Bárbara Azeo, told Brazil Agency that, with accreditation, the samba circles are safeguarded by the new Cultural Development Program Rede Carioca de Rodas de Samba, established by decree 50,785, of 2021, amended the following year, whose operation is regulated by the Municipal Secretariat of Public Order (Seop ).

Calendar

“The circles registered with this accreditation will form a large municipal calendar that the city hall will publicize and to which the population will have access to find out what programs take place regularly,” said Bárbara.

She also clarified that, in addition to participating in this municipal calendar, the samba circles will receive three licenses that they would need to obtain from other departments.

“The idea is that this accreditation is a great facilitator, bureaucratically speaking, for these circles and generates this mapping and great programming for the city to have access to where there is samba, what type of target audience is. People will be able to identify with the wheels according to the profile of the samba circle and the territory. Producers register the circles and have to explain what link the circle has with that territory. He takes great care of the city”, he specified.

Selection

A technical committee – made up of employees from the city of Rio and representatives appointed by the Associação Rede Carioca de Rodas de Samba – will select the wheels from May 3rd, and should deliver the results of the accreditation this month, considering that the wheels do not approved have three days to present appeals. Criteria such as ties to the territory, impact of the circle and the cultural experience of those responsible will be evaluated.

The last registration of Rio samba circles took place in 2021 and allowed the regulation of these groups in public spaces. That year, 95 samba circles were mapped.

Bárbara believes that the number of samba circles will be greater this year. To date, 40 wheels have been accredited. She stated that half of the registered circles indicated that this was the first time she was participating. The notice aims to insert new wheels into the Rio scene and certify them.

Once approved, the samba circles registered in the new Cultural Development Program Rede Carioca de Rodas de Samba will be held on the days and locations specified in the calendar published by the Municipal Department of Culture in the Official Gazette.