Planning efforts for one of the Caribbean’s most anticipated cultural gatherings, CARIFESTA 2027, are officially underway, following a high-level planning meeting this week between representatives of the CARICOM Secretariat and government officials from Guyana, the event’s 2027 host nation.
According to an official press statement issued by CARICOM, the meeting took place Monday at the CARICOM Secretariat headquarters, where Guyana’s Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport Charles S. Ramson and junior minister Steven Jacobs convened with a CARICOM delegation led by Beverly Harry-Emmanuel, Adviser for Social Development at the intergovernmental organization.
The core agenda of the gathering centered on laying the groundwork for the 16th iteration of the Caribbean Festival of Arts, more widely known by its shorthand name CARIFESTA. To frame the collaborative planning discussions, CARICOM’s Programme Manager for Culture Dr. Hilary Brown delivered a comprehensive presentation tracing the origins and transformation of the festival over its decades-long history, establishing a clear context for talks on the major operational components of the 2027 event.
Attendees delved into a broad range of critical topics, from the diverse lineup of artistic and cultural programming that will anchor the festival, to the complex financial, administrative, logistical and marketing frameworks required to pull off the region’s largest cultural gathering. A key theme of the dialogue was exploring how the 2027 festival can further advance the expansion and long-term sustainability of the Caribbean creative economy, supporting creators and cultural industries across all member states.
Guyana holds a unique place in CARIFESTA history, as the release highlighted: the South American nation hosted the very first edition of the regional festival back in 1972, and later welcomed participants and visitors for a second successful staging in 2008. The most recent edition of the event, CARIFESTA XV, was hosted by Barbados in 2025, drawing participants and cultural groups from across the Caribbean and beyond.
Beyond festival logistics, the two sides also used the meeting to advance conversations around regional youth development initiatives. That portion of the gathering was opened by an overview from CARICOM’s Programme Manager for Youth Development Michele Small-Bartley, who laid out current priorities and collaborative opportunities for the Caribbean community to support young people across the region.