Georgetown : CARIFESTA XII in Haiti will be a celebration of Caribbean diversity. It will also provide an “outstanding podium” for Caribbean and international artistes. This is the view expressed by Haitian Ambassador to CARICOM Peterson Noel, who was at the time, updating the media in the regions from Haiti, of the country’s preparation for the hosting of the Caribbean Festival of the Arts (CARIFESTA XII,) from August 21-30, under the theme, “Our Roots, Our Culture, Our Common Future.”
Ambassador Noel, who was part of a web conferencing, facilitated by the Caricom Secretariat through its Headquarters in Georgetown, explained that the Carifesta Committee, in support with the Government of Haiti and the Ministry of Culture, is in full readiness for the event, and further is working to ensure that this, the twelfth edition be ‘exceptional’ in the way of cultural offerings and participation.
Outlining some of the plans in place for the hosting of the event, Noel explained that “the plan is to spread out the activities across five cities in Haiti, to play-up the distinct peculiarity of cities, that each reflects different aspect of the Haitian society, its history and way of life. These include Port-au-Prince; the capital city and the centre of Haiti’s political and intellectual life, Jacmel; the Haitian city that has kept the most traces of its French colonialisation, Gonhaive; the city of Haitian Independence and Cap-Haitian; one of the most historical city in the Caribbean, and home to the impressive Citadelle Laferrire, a massive stone fortress bristling with cannons, atop a nearby mountain,” Noel said. The fifth city that will be host to the event will be Les Cayes.
Ambassador Noel also disclosed that the Carifesta team has asked the Haitian Finance Minister to address airline fees for special charters landing in Haiti during the 10 days. “…the cost of travel within the region is very very high, and we understand that one of the reasons that travelling within the region is very high is the government taxes, so the committee has addressed a letter to the Minister of Finance and we will start discussions by this week, to explore the possibility of the government to have a waiver for any special shuttle that is coming to Haiti from any Caricom member state to attend Carifesta,” he explained.
Ambassador Noel, who is also Vice Chairman on Carifesta XII committee and is also part of the Ministry of Finance explained that “based on the information we have, we plan to reduce the cost of airfare by over US$100 or $150,” for member states to travel to Haiti. He said that by next week, the committee should have a response from the Minister of Finance and once everything is clear, the information will be shared with the CARICOM member states.
Thus far, Montserrat, Guyana, Guadeloupe, Canada, Antigua and Barbuda, Mexico, United States of America are among some of the countries that have since confirmed their attendance for Carifesta XII. He said that while the country has received an informal confirmation from Dominica Republic, it is still to receive confirmation from key CARICOM member states, including Suriname, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.
Questioned about the cost incurred thus far, with regard to the hosting of the event, Noel, only confirmed that the US$7M that was set aside for the hosting, based on interest will not be enough, and that the government will be seeking to work with the private sector, including Digicel and Heineken, to solicit funds and offset excess cost.
Meanwhile, Head of Culture and Community Development at Caricom Dr. Hilary Brown expressed the Secretariat’s satisfaction with the fact that the Government of Haiti was chosen to host Carifesta XII. Addressing the conference, from the CARICOM Headquarters in Georgetown, Dr. Brown noted that the opportunity not only provided for culture to be used as an important avenue through which to promote greater understanding and cooperation among the Caricom states, but fittingly too for the “ the further integration of Haiti into the Caribbean community.”
Carifesta was introduced in 1972 in response to a request from artistes in the region and it was introduced to celebrate the art, foster a vision of Caribbean unity and positively advance Caribbean culture, regionally and internationally.
“In its original design, this multi-disciplinary mega event that showcases the cultural expression of artistes in over 30 countries in the Caribbean was to be held every four years. Carifesta is now being staged every two years instead of every four years, so that it can play a great catalytic role in stimulating the regions’ culture and creative industries,” Dr. Brown explained.
To date, there have been 11 Carifesta events, staged in seven countries, with the most recent held in Suriname in August of 2013.
In response to stakeholders and as a result of mandates from the region’s Minister of Culture, Carifesta is being restructured in keeping with a strategic plan that was written for the festival in 2004. This new Carifesta model that is currently being pursued, seeks to ensure that Carifesta be more dynamic, economically viable and meet the expectation of regional and international audiences.
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