By Ivan Cairo
Caribbean Net News Suriname Correspondent
Email: ivan@caribbeannetnews.com
PARAMARIBO/HAVANNA: Suriname and Cuba have announced that they will strengthen cultural cooperation. Suriname’s minister of Education and Human Development Edwin Wolf signed an agreement last week with his Cuban counterpart minister Abel Prieto Jimenez during a weeklong visit to Havana, Cuba.
The agreement facilitates exchange programmes for artists and technical personnel.
“This will especially improve the mutual cultural development,” said the ministry of Education in a press release.
In November two Cuban music experts will visit Suriname to draft a cooperation project with Surinamese colleagues. The project is aiming at improving the skills of Surinamese trumpet players and saxophonists.
According to Minister Wolf, the signed agreement fits in the plans to modernise cultural policy. Currently both countries are exploring the possibility to expand cooperation into other fields such as literature, fine arts, drama and film.
Recently the Suriname government has also strengthened cooperation with Cuba in other fields. Currently several Cuban medical doctors are working in Suriname especially in the rural areas, while Surinamese patients on a regular basis are travelling to Havana to undergo eye surgery offered by the Cuban government.
Also, in the field of energy, cooperation between the two countries has increased. Recently the second stage of an energy saving project the so-called ‘Spaarlampen-project’ has been completed, while Cuba provided tens of thousands energy saving lamps to distribute to households throughout Suriname.
Energy minister Gregory Rusland said that the project was a great success. In several areas and communities energy bills has been reduced by up to ten percent, the energy company recently disclosed. | 
