Carib Scope

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  • Kadooment delivers spectacular start

    Kadooment delivers spectacular start

    A short hold-up at the opening of the 2026 Flow 5G+ Grand Kadooment did nothing to dim the electric excitement of attendees packed along the route to witness one of Barbados’ most beloved cultural celebrations. As masqueraders, performers, and spectators filled Princess Alice Highway, the day officially got underway at 8:40 a.m. when the stirring strains of Barbados’ National Anthem filled the air, drawing a respectful hush over the crowd.

    Moments after the anthem concluded, Walk Holy Band stepped forward as the first of 22 planned processions, opening the event with a soulful, spirited performance that set a tone of joyous reverence, asking for divine blessing over the day’s festivities. Right on their heels came Blue Box Cart and Salt, whose dazzling presentation delivered a thoughtful, artful tribute to the Barbados Landship, honoring and preserving one of the island nation’s most treasured cultural traditions. The high-octane masqueraders of Krave then took the spotlight, raising the energy for the gathered onlookers.

    One of the standout moments for captivated attendees was the long-awaited return of the iconic King and Queen costume display. Curated by the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) Large Mas Costumes and paired with the rhythmic, soulful melodies of the Drummers Federation, the showcase was a visual feast for every person in attendance. Intricately crafted pieces including *Keeper of the Canes*, *Queen of Crop Over*, and *Mr Harding’s Fiery March* stirred nostalgia among long-time festival-goers, who recalled decades of Grand Kadooment parades led by these majestic regal displays.

    Boasting more than 1,000 masqueraders, Vida by Esquire was the largest procession of the day, dominating the route as a sprawling, vivid sea of color divided into six elaborately designed sections. The massive contingent took nearly 10 minutes to pass the judges’ pavilion before continuing its rhythmic procession toward Mighty Grynner Highway.

    Through the early morning, brief gaps between processions left spectators waiting for the next performance, with several minutes often passing between bands arriving at the judging stage. Explaining the minor delays, NCF Festival and Events Planner Stacia Bryan noted the pauses were primarily caused by revellers putting the final touches on their looks before heading to the route.

    “You know us ladies, we like to make sure that the make-up is on and the eyelashes are on. We realised that the bands will be a little bit delayed because y’all still at home putting on the finery to come and jump because it has shifted because people like to play Pretty Mas and want to be on Instagram and social media pages and we love that because it will help to promote the festival,” Bryan told Barbados TODAY shortly after noon. She added that despite the gaps, the event had progressed smoothly, confirming that half of all registered bands had already completed the judging segment, with strong momentum continuing through the day.

    “I am very pleased with the productions. Everything has been moving smoothly along the streets. All of the water stations are in place. The revellers are well hydrated, the music trucks are moving and comfortable because the police and the BDF are on the ground to make sure we have a safe Grand Kadooment,” Bryan said.

    As the midday sun climbed, bringing sweltering temperatures that matched the intensity of the performances, attendees sought relief from the heat from local vendors, with lines forming at sno-cone carts for a quick cool-down. Both spectators and masqueraders were spotted clutching portable fans and full water bottles, determined not to let the heat cut into their celebration.

    Through the afternoon, the stage became a dazzling blur of feathers, hand-sewn beads, and shimmering sequins, as elaborate costumes from troupes including Aura, Colorz Entertainment, Haus of Mas, and Mondé Mas left judges and onlookers mesmerized. One particularly standout piece, Carla Gittens’ *The Echo of Legends* worn by Zahira Bayley, drew gasps from the crowd for its intricate design and cultural resonance.

    Veteran bandleader Betty West delivered one of the day’s most moving presentations, leading her 158-member small band in a heartfelt tribute to fallen Grand Kadooment legends, including Winston Jones, Renee Ratcliff, Gwyneth Squires, Roseann Lewis, and Reggie Cave. Her performance highlighted the immeasurable contributions these icons made to shape the festival into the world-renowned cultural event it is today.

    The formal judging segment came to a spectacular close just after 1 p.m., when the final procession, Fifth Element, crossed the stage. With official proceedings complete, revellers fully embraced the festive spirit, winding, dancing, and chipping their way along the route to Mighty Grynner Highway for the iconic main jump-up celebration that closes out the annual festival.

  • Simons: Meer tijd nodig om schade te herstellen

    Simons: Meer tijd nodig om schade te herstellen

    One year after taking office, Suriname’s President Jenny Simons delivered a frank progress update to reporters during a Monday press conference, acknowledging the slow pace of national recovery while outlining upcoming policy changes to tackle long-running systemic challenges.

    Addressing public expectations for rapid change, Simons noted that repairing decades of damage accumulated over five years cannot be completed in just 12 months. She emphasized that at least a two-year transition period is required to put the country on a stable path, but added that the government cannot indefinitely claim limited financial resources as a barrier to action.

    A core priority of the Simons administration remains reforming the country’s tax system, with five major tax reform bills currently under review by the National Assembly. Simons singled out unregulated gold mining, both legal and illegal, as a key area where the nation has failed to capture fair economic benefits. She admitted that fixing issues in the gold sector is far from straightforward, and the existing Gold Sector Ordering Commission has not delivered the results the government expected. To address this gap, the administration plans to establish a dedicated national gold authority, with draft enabling legislation expected to be submitted to parliament by the fourth quarter of the year.

    Simons also drew attention to the severe environmental and public health harms caused by unregulated gold extraction, pointing out that toxic chemicals including cyanide and mercury have flowed into the country’s ecosystems unimpeded for years, with the problem growing progressively worse. She stressed that a turning point is urgently needed, and the government is drafting new legislation to push the sector toward less harmful, more sustainable extraction methods. “This is a path we will pursue with full seriousness,” Simons said.

    The president highlighted an ongoing acute environmental crisis in the community of Pikin Saron and surrounding areas, where toxic pollutants have contaminated the Saramacca River. Initial investigations point to a leak from a local gold mining operation, possibly linked to local miner Grassalco or a Chinese mining firm operating in the region. Simons confirmed that investigative agencies have been ordered to deliver a full report with clear findings within two weeks.

    Looking back on the first year of her administration, Simons said the national recovery phase is now underway. More than 50 corruption and misconduct cases have been submitted to the Public Prosecution Service, and state-owned enterprises have now been restructured with new executive boards tasked with stabilizing operations and driving long-term growth.

    The president did not shy away from acknowledging setbacks. “Not everything we set out to do has been accomplished,” she said, noting that not all missing state vehicles have been recovered to date. Despite these challenges, public works and green space agencies have made progress on infrastructure repairs, the education sector has launched school renovation projects, and policymakers are working to address systemic flaws in the education system, including the persistent national shortage of qualified teachers.

    Looking ahead, Simons announced that the government’s temporary fuel price cap, implemented to protect households from rising energy costs, cannot remain in place indefinitely. The measure currently costs the government 350 million Surinamese dollars per month to maintain, and will be phased out in the coming period. Simons did not provide a specific timeline or details on how the phase-out will be implemented, but confirmed that the government plans to introduce a moderate increase in civil servants’ salaries to offset upcoming cost of living adjustments.

  • Roadside snackettes to be relocated to new Zeelugt market

    Roadside snackettes to be relocated to new Zeelugt market

    On Monday, August 3, 2026, Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali outlined sweeping community improvement plans under the government’s new model villages initiative during two public consultations held in Zeelugt, West Coast Demerara and Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo, promising transformative upgrades to quality of life for residents across Region Three.

    During a meeting at Zeelugt Primary School, President Ali confirmed that the village’s popular but hazardous roadside snackettes – small food vendors that currently operate directly along the main public thoroughfare – will be relocated to a purpose-built new public market. The new facility will feature a dedicated section for these vendors, alongside a clean, safe, hygienic, and visitor-friendly food court designed to draw local patrons and tourists alike. Complementing the market development, the government has a large-scale waterfront regeneration project in the works that will add a public park and dedicated event spaces designed to host community gatherings without disrupting residential areas. Beyond food vendors, the plan also calls for consolidating spray-painting workshops, mechanic garages and other similar businesses into a single zoned location that minimizes noise, traffic and pollution impacts on nearby residential neighborhoods.

    For Tuschen, located across the Essequibo River on the East Bank, the government plans to build a dedicated centralized logistics hub that will serve as a large-scale truck parking lot to remove heavy commercial vehicles from residential streets. Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation Deodat Indar, a Tuschen resident himself, detailed the breadth of infrastructure upgrades planned for the community: 89 kilometers of newly expanded, deep concrete drains that will double as water reservoirs to address flooding and water storage needs; reinforced road shoulders for all two-lane routes; pre-installed ducts for future utility service expansions; and a new bypass road connecting Tuschen to Windsor Forest that will redirect through traffic away from the village’s crowded residential core.

    A centerpiece of the Tuschen upgrade is a GY$1.5 billion, 32,000 square-foot modern public market to be constructed at the rear of the village. Indar emphasized that the new facility will replace the informal, makeshift pallet-built stalls that currently serve vendors, raising community living and commercial standards long-term. Additional public safety and infrastructure upgrades include 168 new security cameras to support local law enforcement in crime reduction, the installation of new fire hydrants for improved emergency response, and 1,500 new street lights to boost nighttime safety and visibility. Maintenance of the upgraded community spaces will fall jointly to the Region Three administration and the Ministry of Local Government, Indar confirmed.

    Housing Minister Collin Croal added clear expectations for community standards under the model villages initiative, stating that the government will not allow ongoing issues including derelict vehicles abandoned on public land, unregulated improper garbage disposal, long-term open storage of construction materials on public rights-of-way, and poorly maintained drainage systems that contribute to flooding. President Ali framed the model villages project as a holistic effort to improve resident quality of life, addressing not just physical infrastructure but also social cohesion, environmental cleanliness, and noise pollution reduction. “The quality of life that we experience in the community depends on the quality of our values, our culture, the way we treat the environment, the way we dump our garbage and the way in which we look out for each other,” he told attendees.

  • NCF declares Crop Over 2026 a success

    NCF declares Crop Over 2026 a success

    Barbados’ iconic annual Crop Over festival has wrapped its 2026 season to widespread acclaim, with National Cultural Foundation (NCF) Chairman Dr. Jasmine Babb declaring the celebration an unqualified success that demonstrated enduring public passion for the island’s cultural heritage.

    Speaking exclusively to Barbados TODAY, Babb highlighted record turnout across the festival’s full slate of events, from the highly anticipated Pic-O-De-Crop Finals to the high-energy Pandemonium showcase and family-focused Junior Kadooment. Every ticketed fete and public gathering sold out completely, she confirmed, with even spontaneous vendor participation far exceeding expectations. “All of the fetes and all of the events have been sold out. The Pic-O-De-Crop final was absolutely full. We also had Pandemonium which was well attended and Junior Kadooment. Everything was well attended, and everybody is coming out including the vendors. All in all this year has been an excellent year,” Babb stated.

    The 2026 season faced one unexpected logistical hurdle, however: the need to relocate the Pic-O-De-Crop Finals just weeks before the event, after Kensington Oval – the competition’s traditional home – was booked to host the state funeral of Barbados’ beloved National Hero Sir Garfield Sobers. Organizers first moved the finals to CARIFESTA Island, but after consulting with participating performers, the event was shifted to the more spacious, scenic National Botanical Gardens. The last-minute change proved to be a hit with attendees, and the event went off without a hitch. “In the end, we came to an agreement among the parties and that event went excellently,” Babb added.

    As the festival heads into its final stretch, all attention is now turning to Tuesday’s Cohobblopot, a historic cultural showcase returning to the Crop Over calendar after more than 10 years off the lineup. Like the repositioned Pic-O-De-Crop Finals, the revived event will also be hosted at the National Botanical Gardens. This revival marks a deliberate effort to reconnect with Crop Over’s roots while reimagining the celebration for a new generation. Traditionally held on the Sunday before the headline Grand Kadooment parade, Cohobblopot has long been a core part of Crop Over, blending theatrical performance, elaborate traditional costume displays, and live music into a one-of-a-kind cultural showcase. For this year’s revival, organizers are bringing back rare heritage costumes, with plans to expand the showcase further in the 2027 festival.

    Minister of State Shane Archer, who oversees youth and cultural policy in the Prime Minister’s Office, originally announced the event’s return earlier this year, framing it as a balancing act: creating an engaging, contemporary experience for younger attendees while evoking nostalgic memories for long-time Crop Over fans who enjoyed the event in past decades.

    Beyond attendance and programming, NCF festival organizers credited on-the-ground partners with keeping the 2026 season safe and running smoothly. NCF Festival and Events Planner Stacia Bryan singled out the island’s security services for particular praise, noting that the entire festival remained largely incident-free thanks to early, coordinated planning. “We worked very early this year with the team from The Barbados Police Service and we have a new commissioner and have also been working with Assistant Commissioner Christine Stanford. She is amazing and has worked with us for about three to four Crop-Overs, so we have a well-oiled machine happening. The Barbados Defence Force — thank you to Brigadier Carlos Lovell and all the support we get,” Bryan said. She also extended gratitude to the Barbados Water Authority for installing critical hydration stations along the Grand Kadooment parade route, ensuring attendees stayed cool and safe through the day’s celebrations.

  • Friend Discovers Body of Pregnant Belize City Woman

    Friend Discovers Body of Pregnant Belize City Woman

    On a Sunday morning in Belize City, a grim discovery unfolded at a Vernon Street apartment building that has left the local community reeling. Law enforcement officials confirmed during a midafternoon press briefing that 22-year-old Kimane Garbutt, who was pregnant, was found dead in an advanced state of decomposition at the property.

    The sequence of events that led to the discovery began the previous day, when Garbutt was last spotted alive by a close friend at approximately 7:00 a.m. At that time, Garbutt told her friend she was feeling unwell, prompting growing concern when she did not reach out again in the following hours. After multiple attempts to contact Garbutt via phone went unanswered, the friend made the decision to travel to her Vernon Street residence to check on her wellbeing shortly after 9:30 a.m. Sunday.

    Upon entering the apartment, the friend made the tragic discovery of Garbutt’s body, and immediately contacted local police to report the incident. Police Commissioner (or lead investigator) Smith stated that at this early stage of the investigation, law enforcement does not suspect foul play was involved in Garbutt’s death. The body has been transported to a forensic facility, where it is currently awaiting a full post-mortem examination to confirm the exact cause and timeline of death, with official results expected to be released in the coming days once forensic analysis is complete. Local community members have expressed shock and sorrow over the death of the young pregnant woman, as the investigation continues to move forward.

  • Bandleaders investing the future of Crop Over

    Bandleaders investing the future of Crop Over

    As one of Barbados’ most iconic cultural celebrations, the annual Crop Over festival’s flagship Grand Kadooment event faces growing pressure to preserve its indigenous craft roots amid shifting industry trends. To safeguard the centuries-old tradition of masquerade costume making for future generations, a cohort of veteran bandleaders has launched targeted youth training initiatives and long-term succession plans to keep the cultural heart of the festival beating.

    Kathy-Ann Scott, founder of Haus of Mas who has built her brand over 11 years in the industry, made youth skills development a core priority for her 2024 band entry. Speaking with Barbados TODAY on the sidelines of the Flow 5G+ Grand Kadooment event, Scott explained that while running a mas band has grown increasingly challenging in recent decades, the shifting landscape has created a critical opening to rebuild local artistic capacity. This year, every costume displayed by her troupe was crafted entirely in Barbados by local artisans, with 15 and 16-year-old trainees joining the production line to learn core skills including feather work and costume framing.

    Scott emphasized that nurturing local craft is not just a matter of heritage preservation—it is key to building long-term investment in the festival. “If we keep exporting all our costume production overseas, we lose the core art of costume making and masquerade itself,” she noted. “When people help create the celebration, they feel a sense of ownership, and that makes them far more committed to keeping the tradition alive.”

    For 35-year industry veteran Betty West, the push to pass on her craft changed plans for her planned retirement. West announced last year that 2023 would mark her final year leading a Grand Kadooment band, but she has extended her tenure to train a new generation of creators. “I said this year would be my last, but that changed,” she shared. “I have young people now learning the craft, so I’ll stay on for two more years to make sure they’re ready.”

    Henderson Jones, a master wirebender with more than 30 years of experience creating costume structures, warned that core traditional skills—including wire bending, costume shaping, and structural piece fabrication—are at risk of dying out completely. He is calling for formal integration of masquerade craft into national school curricula to build a sustained pipeline of new talent. Right now, Jones explained, schools only teach basic fabric decoration, not the advanced structural skills that are the backbone of authentic Grand Kadooment costume design. If production continues to shift to overseas manufacturers in Trinidad and China, he added, costume prices will skyrocket past the reach of most local participants, pricing communities out of the tradition they created.

    Quincy Jones, bandleader of the popular troupe Zenobia, is preparing a gradual handover of leadership to a younger generation, framing succession as a natural and necessary step for the festival’s evolution. While he plans to step back in the near future, he emphasized the need to keep the festival’s cultural heritage at the center of its growth, even as the event evolves to meet modern tastes.

    Veteran bandleader Christopher Williams, who returned to Grand Kadooment in 2023 after a 10-year hiatus, shares that concern. He stepped back into the festival specifically to help reverse what he sees as an erosion of the event’s indigenous cultural identity. Williams’ band Salt continues to center its performances around tributes to the Barbados Landship, a unique Indigenous cultural movement with roots in Barbadian working history, and he has already laid out plans for multiple iterations of this cultural tribute over the coming years. “I fully embrace change, but we need to maintain consistency around what is indigenous, what is creatively ours, and what defines our cultural identity,” he said.

    Collectively, these veteran leaders’ efforts aim to ensure that Grand Kadooment grows not just as a popular tourist event, but as a living, locally rooted cultural practice that belongs to generations of Barbadians to come.

  • Coast Guard Continues Search for Missing Samuel Chi

    Coast Guard Continues Search for Missing Samuel Chi

    On August 3, 2026, search and rescue operations led by the Belize Coast Guard entered a new phase after teams recovered one of two men who went missing during a weekend boating trip off the coast of Caye Caulker. However, efforts are still intensifying to locate the second missing person, Samuel Chi, and the small vessel the pair were traveling in.

    The incident began when Albert Vacarro and Samuel Chi failed to return to shore from their recreational outing on Sunday night, prompting an immediate missing persons report to local authorities. Assistant Superintendent Stacy Smith officially confirmed the details of the report during a scheduled police briefing held on the afternoon of August 3.

    Within hours of the report being filed, search operations launched around 10:00 p.m. on Sunday, covering hundreds of nautical acres across the waters surrounding Coffee Caye and the adjacent smaller island chains. After more than 12 hours of coordinated searching, search teams made a breakthrough: around 11:30 a.m. on August 3, a Belize Coast Guard patrol vessel spotted Vacarro floating adrift in open water, Lieutenant Mark Choc, Operations Officer for the Belize Coast Guard, confirmed in an interview with local outlet News Five.

    First responders conducted an on-site medical evaluation immediately after pulling Vacarro from the water. The assessment found that Vacarro was suffering from severe dehydration and significant disorientation as a result of his time stranded at sea. “He was dehydrated and disoriented, whereby he was not able to confirm what really transpired,” Choc explained in his statement, noting that Vacarro’s condition left investigators unable to immediately piece together the sequence of events that led to the pair going missing.

    As the search for Chi dragged on through the day, the Belize Coast Guard expanded the operation by activating a joint task force with two additional local agencies: the Belize Port Authority and the national Fisheries Department. The combined team has deployed additional surface vessels and expanded the search grid to cover more distant coastal areas in the region.

    As of the afternoon of August 3, Chi remains unaccounted for, and the vessel the two men departed on has still not been located by search teams. The Belize Coast Guard has confirmed that search and rescue efforts will continue around the clock until Chi is found, and investigators will launch a full review to identify the root cause of the incident once all parties are recovered.

  • 279 Cadets Graduate From 27th Annual Police Youth Camp

    279 Cadets Graduate From 27th Annual Police Youth Camp

    After a week-long immersive program focused on leadership development and friendly competition, Belize’s 27th Annual National Police Youth Cadet Corps Camp drew to a formal close on Saturday, August 1, in the coastal town of Dangriga. The annual initiative, hosted by the Belize Police Department, marked another successful year of empowering young people across the nation, with 279 local cadets taking part in this year’s iteration.

    Organized around the core theme “Command with Honour, Inspire Action, Teaching Young Minds for a Successful Tomorrow,” the camp brought together participants and staff from every region of Belize. In addition to the 279 youth cadets, 80 instructors made up of active police officers and civilian volunteers collaborated to deliver structured training, mentorship, and skill-building activities throughout the week.

    Beyond leadership workshops, the week’s schedule included inter-regional athletic competitions, ceremonial foot drill contests, and promotional assessments for cadets seeking advancement within the corps. When the final scores were tallied, the Northern Region claimed top honors in both football and foot drill, while the Eastern Region secured first place in the basketball and volleyball tournaments.

    Assistant Superintendent Stacy Smith shared details of the camp’s outcomes during an afternoon police briefing held following the closing ceremonies. Smith confirmed that 69 participating cadets successfully passed their promotional examinations and earned advancements in rank within the cadet corps. The week-long program concluded with a formal award ceremony recognizing top-performing participants and teams, followed by a celebratory public parade that wound through the streets of central Dangriga.

  • Packed sidelines greet Grand Kadooment parade

    Packed sidelines greet Grand Kadooment parade

    The winding parade route stretching from Princess Alice Highway to the Mighty Grynner Highway buzzed with electric energy from pre-dawn hours on Monday, as hundreds of excited spectators claimed prime viewing spots ahead of the 2026 Grand Kadooment parade, the iconic climax of Barbados’ annual Crop Over festival. Arming themselves with folding chairs, packed coolers of food and ice-cold drinks, and all the supplies needed for a full day of revelry and celebration, both local Barbadians and international tourists turned out in force to mark the beloved cultural tradition.

    For many attendees, watching the vibrant procession of costumed bands has been a cherished intergenerational family ritual, even after a missed edition last year. Audrey Smith, who settled into a front-row spot opposite the parade’s first judging station along Princess Alice Highway with her entire family, shared that the annual outing has become a non-negotiable part of the Crop Over season for her loved ones. “We love every single part of Crop Over – the energy of the bands, the explosion of colors, every bit of it. At our age, we’re happy just to soak it all in from the sidelines,” Smith explained. Having already attended two pre-parade fetes this season, she also praised the 2026 festival’s curated soundtrack, calling the music “fantastic.” Her family came fully prepared, stocking enough ice, snacks, and drinks to keep them comfortable throughout the day-long event.

    Lavette Jones, a Barbadian expat who returns home every year specifically for Crop Over, echoed Smith’s enthusiasm, noting that this year’s festival outshone many previous editions. After missing 2025’s festivities, Jones made returning to the Grand Kadooment parade a top priority this year, and was thrilled with her viewing spot. “I was able to attend more events across the season this year than I have in years, and it’s been perfect,” she said. “I’m exactly where I need to be.”

    Further along the route in Eagle Hall, Roxanne Foster welcomed visiting relatives from Virginia, and the group staked out a corner spot with an unobstructed view of passing costumed bands. The group had taken in a full slate of Crop Over events throughout the season, including calypso competitions and multiple community fetes, and greatly enjoyed the season’s musical offerings. However, Foster raised a common critique shared by many long-time attendees: the revised 2026 parade route disrupted the smooth flow of bands that long-time fans remember from previous years. “When the parade used the old route, the bands moved along much more seamlessly,” she explained, pointing out that noticeable gaps between procession groups were obvious this year. Even with that critique, the group joined other attendees in praising the intricate creativity and artistry on display in this year’s band costumes.

    On President Kennedy Drive, long-time festival attendee Fiona echoed that praise, noting that the 2026 costumes were vibrant, well-crafted, and impressive across all bands. Like Foster, Fiona said she preferred the layout of the original parade route from her younger years when she used to participate in the procession rather than watch from the sidelines. Still, she emphasized that change is an expected part of the festival’s evolution, and that overall, the 2026 edition ran smoothly. “Other than the route adjustment, everything’s been great,” she said. Fiona also shared highlights from her season, which included attending the popular Fusion and Platinum events, and named her top tracks of 2026: *Ching Ching* by Jagwa De Champ and Nelieux, and *Legends From the Grave* by this year’s newly crowned Calypso Monarch Adrian Clarke.

  • NCF warns against AI-generated Crop Over videos

    NCF warns against AI-generated Crop Over videos

    Barbados’ National Cultural Foundation (NCF) has issued a public alert over the spread of deceptive AI-generated videos that falsely claim to show the country’s iconic Grand Kadooment festival, urging audiences to seek only verified, official content for accurate coverage of the beloved cultural event. In a public statement released Monday, foundation representatives confirmed they have identified multiple AI-created clips circulating across YouTube and other major digital platforms that incorrectly frame synthetic imagery as authentic festival content. Many of these misleading videos are structured with headlines, descriptions and formatting designed to trick viewers into mistaking them for legitimate live streams, official event recordings or authentic on-the-ground footage, the NCF explained.

    In its formal release, the NCF drew a clear line between authentic festival content and the synthetic clips, stressing that none of these AI-generated videos were produced, commissioned, approved or officially endorsed by the foundation. “These materials do not offer an accurate visual record of Grand Kadooment, and they should not be treated as a true reflection of the entire Crop Over experience,” the statement added.

    Grand Kadooment, the centerpiece of Barbados’ annual Crop Over festival, is far more than a public celebration: it is a living, evolving expression of Barbadian national identity, crafted collectively by a sprawling community of local creative talent. From bandleaders and costume designers to independent artisans, musicians, performing artists, production crews, participating masqueraders and thousands of spectators, every person involved contributes to making the one-of-a-kind event what it is, the NCF noted.

    The foundation is calling on both private social media users and established media outlets to avoid circulating or republishing the AI-generated videos as factual documentation of the 2024 or any year’s Grand Kadooment. For audiences seeking verified footage, behind-the-scenes updates and official event information, the NCF directs the public to its own verified social channels, @thencfbarbados and @lovecropoverbb, as well as content from the organization’s licensed broadcast and media partners.

    While the NCF says it welcomes the growing global interest in Barbados’ Crop Over tradition, the organization emphasized that all public depictions of the festival must be created and shared responsibly, with full respect for the Barbadian creatives and cultural practitioners whose tireless work and heritage bring the iconic celebration to life each year.