Trinidad and Tobago’s 2025/2026 budget has been hailed as one of the most progressive in recent years, addressing key areas such as the green economy, agriculture, marginalized groups, and young families. However, the creative industries have once again been sidelined, reflecting a longstanding pattern of political and institutional neglect. Despite the sector’s potential to generate significant foreign exchange through music, carnival, fashion, and film, it received minimal attention in the budget speech, with only two brief mentions and a few buried items in budget documents. This lack of focus fails to align with international standards or the local reality, where the creative economy could thrive with proper policy, legislative, and institutional support. In response, a coalition of artists has called for a closed-door summit with the government to address these gaps. The budget’s vague references to a ‘Creative Value-Chain Fund’ and enhanced IP protection have left many in the sector confused, especially given the previous administration’s dismantling of key agencies like FilmTT, FashionTT, and MusicTT. These agencies were replaced with a new entity tied to Eximbank, created without stakeholder consultation and with unclear operational mechanics. The creative sector’s underfunding has been a persistent issue, with film grant funding once plummeting to just $1 million—insufficient even for catering on a small foreign production. To unlock the sector’s potential, experts propose several interventions, including a national ‘buy-local’ campaign, the enactment of local content policies, the establishment of a national arts council, increased funding for CreativeTT, and the launch of a national tour company to export Trinidad and Tobago’s creative IP. Additionally, addressing the human crisis among local creatives, building creative hubs, and setting growth targets for Carnival are seen as critical steps. Without these measures, the creative sector’s vast potential will remain untapped, leaving Trinidad and Tobago lagging behind global peers like the UK, where the creative industries generate billions annually.