The Department of Tourism has joined forces with Black Entertainment Television to provide $40,000 in scholarship money for Bermuda?s young entertainers.

?The Government of Bermuda believes that the future of tourism lies with our youth. We hope to nurture our home-grown talent to ensure that our entertainment and cultural scene is exciting and vibrant,? Tourism Minister Ewart Brown said at a Press conference.

?We have identified a genuine need to assist Bermudians studying music and as a result I am pleased to announce the creation of the Bermuda Music Festival Educational Scholarship. We have decided to allocate $20,000 from this year?s Bermuda Music Festival revenue for Bermudians pursuing college degrees in music, production and entertainment-related disciplines.

?BET has confirmed they will match Government?s $20,000, resulting in a total scholarship fund of $40,000. This is a significant contribution by one of our partners and I would like to express my sincere appreciation to both Paxton Baker, BET Jazz senior vice president and general manager, and Cybelle Brown, director of sales and marketing.?

Mr. Baker expressed his excitement at the venture. It was the chance to study arts at school that led to his job, he said ? a job which allows him to travel around the world, do something he enjoys and make a good living at it.

And he threw down the gauntlet to other members of the private sector to join in. ?This is something that is very worthy, and we encourage you to do it.?

Logistics of the scholarship fund have yet to be worked out, Dr. Brown said.

?The Ministry and BET will be awarding the funds to students studying in the fall of 2005. We will be advertising the scholarship fund in December when most students return to the Island for the holidays.?

As for the change of the festival?s name from the Bermuda Jazz Festival to the Bermuda Music Festival, Mr. Baker said elsewhere music was often performed under the guise of a ?jazz festival?, a phrase that Americans, as the forerunners of jazz, were very comfortable with.

?However Bermuda has such a solid reputation that people are comfortable with travelling here anyway,? he said.

The scholarship fund is a first step on the way to bringing Bermudians back to the core of Tourism on the Island, Dr. Brown said. ?You can?t have the entertainment without the talent. Beaches can be found everywhere, but Bermudian people can only be found in Bermuda.?