Green Point residents’ perceptions of the socioeconomic impact of the Cape Town Carnival

Abstract

This study investigates the socio-economic impact of the Cape Town Carnival (CTC) as perceived by residents of the Green Point suburb of Cape Town. In most cases, successful carnival events are underpinned by community support thus it is crucial to examine residents’ perceptions towards such events. The CTC is an annual cultural event which celebrates the transformative power of creativity as well as African identity. In this study, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 318 Green Point residents within a two weeks period after the 2016 CTC event (12 – 26th March). The respondents were surveyed using a spatially-based stratified random sampling method. The investigation explored the perceptions of the residents, in relation to the carnival event, as well as highlighting the positive and negative aspects of their experience. The research primarily adopted quantitative research approach by using a questionnaire with mostly closed-ended questions. The data were analysed using SPSS version 24 software and the findings were visually presented by the use of frequency tables. Key findings of the study highlighted that residents generally perceived the socio-economic impacts of the CTC event positively. However, few residents perceive the event negatively and suggested ways of ensuring that it continues flawlessly. The study recommends more community involvement in the planning of the event. Furthermore, due to the change of perceptions over time, it is recommended that longitudinal and comparative studies be conducted in order to assess the perceptions and to compare the impacts of hosting the CTC event in the Green Point area.