On Thursday the 25th, the Instituto Moinho Cultural Sul-Americano (South American Cultural Mill Institute) and the Autonomous Municipal Government of Puerto Suárez (Bolivia) formalized the Inter-Institutional Cooperation Agreement, which revives and strengthens a partnership built since Moinho Cultural’s early years.
Valid for five years, the agreement establishes cooperation in the areas of culture, music, education and technology, and guarantees the provision of daily transportation by the Puerto Suárez City Hall so that Bolivian participants can attend the Institute’s activities in Corumbá.
Representatives of the Corumbá City Hall, the City Council and other partner institutions from both countries were present. The mayor of Puerto Suárez, María Renée Hoyos Medina, signed the agreement alongside Moinho Cultural’s executive director, Mônica Macedo.
The signing ceremony brought together authorities from both countries and was marked by artistic performances that showcased the cultural richness shared along the border. The Orquestra Juvenil Moinho Cultural (Moinho Cultural Youth Orchestra) and the Cia Infantojuvenil de Dança do Moinho Cultural (Moinho Cultural Children and Youth Dance Company), with the choreography “Traquinagem”, performed alongside dance, guitar and singing groups from Puerto Suárez.
The partnership between Moinho Cultural and the Bolivian municipalities of Puerto Suárez and Puerto Quijarro has existed since 2004, when the city hall funded transportation for Bolivian participants to the Institute’s headquarters. With the pandemic and political instability in Bolivia, the service was suspended, reducing the number of participants on the Bolivian side. The resumption of negotiations with the new municipal government paved the way for the agreement now formalized.
“Since 2004, when Moinho Cultural was inaugurated, this partnership with Bolivia has existed. The city hall paid for transportation so that Bolivian participants could come here. After the pandemic, due to internal political issues in Bolivia, this minibus was suspended. Now we have resumed these talks with the new government and we are signing for five years so that this transportation happens again,” explained Mônica Macedo, executive director of the Instituto Moinho Cultural Sul-Americano.
The director also emphasized that the arrival of new Bolivian teachers on Moinho Cultural’s staff was a decisive factor for the resumption. “These teachers began to question why so few Bolivian children were here. And, indeed, there were few because the parents were covering the transportation and that was very expensive. Now they are returning and, for sure, we will increase the number of children served,” she stated.
For mayor María Renée Hoyos Medina, the agreement opens up prospects that go beyond transportation. “What we want is for many children to be able to come together, to join those who have already been coming for several years. And to think about the future: to support them so that they can become musicians recognized nationally and internationally,” she declared.
During the ceremony, the Puerto Suárez City Hall announced the donation of two violins to Moinho Cultural, reinforcing the partnership’s commitment also in the dimension of material resources.
The Inter-Institutional Cooperation Agreement does not provide for any financial outlay between the parties: its execution will take place through mutual technical cooperation. A committee made up of members from both institutions will be responsible for monitoring and coordinating the activities.
About Moinho Cultural
Founded in 2004 in Corumbá (MS), the Instituto Moinho Cultural Sul-Americano is a nonprofit organization that works on the border between Brazil and Bolivia for the positive transformation of the local reality, offering free training in music, dance, technology, literature and citizenship to children and adolescents.
In more than 21 years of history, it has already directly benefited more than 25,000 participants. Recognized as a Pontão de Cultura (Culture Hub) of Mato Grosso do Sul and voted Brazil’s Best Culture NGO in 2024, Moinho Cultural maintains the Orquestra de Câmara do Pantanal (Pantanal Chamber Orchestra) and the Cia de Dança do Pantanal (Pantanal Dance Company) as professional artistic expressions of its formative process. More information at moinhocultural.org.br.
