All-day culture fair likely to replace Crop Over climax

An all-day cultural affair could possibly replace the annual Grand Kadooment Day revelry, Minister of Culture John King revealed on state television Monday night.

The event is to include elements of the cancelled Crop Over with costumes being incorporated, he told CBCTV8.

The Culture Minister said: “Yes, there are going to be events. I don’t think they are going to take the same format as a Grand Kadooment but they will have aspects of costumes and other things.

“We are in the process now of rethinking and reimaging those particular events but all I can say to you at this point in time is that when we are finished it’s gonna be good.”

King said the idea is to get all parishes on board and to make it an all-day festival.

“We are really going to be encouraging parishes to do things right across the island but what I can say it’s gonna be all day for sure it is gonna be all day long,” he declared.

News of these national plans being spearheaded by the culture ministry and the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) came just two hours after a Barbados Government Information Service release said that permission had been given to increase the numbers for public gatherings for two specific days, including Emancipation Day.

The statement read: “The COVID-19 Monitoring Unit has advised that the protocols related to public gatherings will be relaxed on Friday, July 24, and Saturday, August 1. Director of the unit Ronald Chapman announced that on those two days, gatherings beyond the current 500-person limit will be permitted.

“He explained that the numbers allowed will depend on the size of the proposed venue. Mr Chapman advised anyone wishing to take advantage of this provision to apply to the COVID-19 Monitoring Unit, which may be reached at the covid19.monitoringunit@barbados.gov.bb.”

Emancipation Day is August 1 while Grand Kadooment Day falls on August 3.

It was on Sunday, April 19 that the national festival was cancelled in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Three days before, on April 16, Cabinet approved the recommendation of the Ministry of Creative Economy, Culture and Sports to cancel the 2020 Crop Over Festival as well as the National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA).

“This decision was made in light of on-going global efforts to contain and manage the COVID–19 pandemic as well as Government’s negative short-term projections for the local economy, regional and international travel and trade and weakened public confidence in attending mass gatherings in the current environment and immediately thereafter,” the statement said.