
The Santa Cruz Carnival has an economic impact on the city of around 35 million euros, a figure that will be reduced this year when it is moved to the month of June. Thus, as estimated by the Capital City Council, taking the party to the gates of summer, including the celebration in the street, will mean an income for the municipality of about 25 million euros, ten less than if it had been held in February.
The Councilor for Fiestas, Alfonso Cabello, insists that it is an estimate, since “we lack historical data, as it is the first time that Carnival is celebrated in June, but, based on the calculations we have made, it would be around that figure. ”.
As the mayor admits, “in June we will already be out of the cruise season, that takes away many visitors on those days of the party, although we do foresee a 100% tourist occupation, but always bearing in mind that we are in low season ”. Knowing all these factors, “we estimate that the economic impact could be between 22 and 27 million, so we are left with the figure of 25 million, since we believe that it is the most reasonable.”
The difference with the month of February lies in the concentration of the program. “In February we have the fair, two full weekends of street parties, plus a longer program at the Fairgrounds, we don’t have that in June as it is, everything is more concentrated.”
The councilor also wanted to highlight the fact that the prospect of having a string of festivities between now and the summer such as the Fiestas de Mayo, which will tie with the Carnival, and this with the 225th anniversary of the Gesta on July 25, means for the city ”a stability in the generation of economic activity that will be reflected in the employment data, since many companies in the service sector are thinking of reinforcing their workforces in the coming months.”
The also delegated councilor of the Development Society took the opportunity to value the unemployment data released yesterday, in which Santa Cruz recorded last month the best unemployment data for a month of February since 2009. Thus, the capital Tenerife closed this month with a 22.5% decrease in the number of unemployed compared to February 2021, which translates into a drop of 6,214 people, and which places the total number of job seekers at 21,419. Compared to the month of January, unemployment grew by 0.2%, that is, 33 more people.
As for contracts, although the year-on-year comparison shows an increase of 45%, the truth is that, compared to the figures for January, contracts fell by 18%, signing a total of 7,604 contracts. This is explained, according to the Development Company, by the termination of the contracts related to the Christmas campaign and sales.
For her part, the until now Councilor for Economic Promotion, Evelyn Alonso, maintains that “in the report on the labor situation in Santa Cruz, it is indicated that for the month of March it is estimated that unemployment will remain around 21,500 people”