Yucatán government evaluates 61 projects for the rescue of Popular Culture in the region

In 2023, the Program for Support of Municipal and Community Cultures (Pacmyc) in Yucatán received 61 proposals, mostly from the interior of the state. This is a lower number compared to previous years, but the projects are interesting for the rescue of popular culture in the region, according to the head of the regional unit, Nidelvia Vela Cano.

She added that this year, there is special attention to communities as more projects are received from there than from the capital. The municipalities of Peto and Yaxcabá had the highest number of proposals for this 2023 edition. More focus was placed on the southern and eastern regional areas for promotion, as the approval depends on another body.

Currently, the projects are in the process of analysis and assessment, carried out by specialists and cultural promoters.

She emphasized that, in the 30 years of its existence, out of all the projects presented, only one percent has not been completed and, unfortunately, has gone into legal disputes.

In previous years, there were projects validated in the productive field. However, the main action is more focused on the cultural sphere, such as native languages, traditional and contemporary popular art, social practices, rituals, and festive events, knowledge and uses related to nature and the universe, systems of social coexistence norms, and cultures of peace, as established in the call for proposals.

The total support amount will be 640,000 pesos, distributed among various proposals that contribute to the preservation of endangered cultural heritage and directly benefit 83 people living in town centers and communities of eight municipalities in the state, most of which have medium to high levels of marginalization.

Some projects with intangible cultural heritage were left unfinished due to administrative issues, as they were required to provide quotations that they did not want to obtain.

According to regional unit data, Pacmyc had a higher number of training sessions for the 61 received projects, indicating a strong response from the organization and participants.

TYT Newsroom