At this year’s CARIFESTA XIII hosted in Barbados, the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) will be facilitating the participation of designers and artisans from across CARIFORUM within their Design Caribbean and Caribbean Essence export promotion platforms.

The assistance, in the tune of €50,000 is funded by the European Union (EU) via the 11^th EDF Regional Private Sector Development Programme (RPSDP), will allow seven fashion designers and four artisans to showcase their creations at the Grand Market & Buyers Shopping Mall from August 19-27 at the Lloyd Erskin Sandiford Centre, Barbados.   The Agency is further supporting the participation of 10 buyers from the EU to attend the event and discover the wealth of products available for the export market.

CARIFESTA is a unique Caribbean festival that celebrates the diverse cultural expression of the Region’s artists and artisans in fashion, food, festivals, the Arts (visual and theatrical), and art and craft. CARIFESTA has been a Regional staple of Caribbean cultural celebrations since it came onto the scene in 1972 when it was first hosted in Georgetown, Guyana. Throughout the years, various Caribbean countries have played host to this Regional festival and Barbados will be doing so for a second time in history with this year’s event under the theme: “Asserting Our Culture, Celebrating Ourselves.”

Caribbean Export’s Services Specialist Allyson Francis asserted that the Agency is “pleased to be able to play a role in supporting this unique festival and facilitate some of the Region’s most eligible cultural actors and creative to exhibit their cultural goods and services.”

Companies participating within the Design Caribbean stand will be Expressions des Arts from Haiti; Eco-Truffles Lavish Body Treats from Trinidad and Tobago; Touch By VLS from Jamaica and Earth Mother Botanicals Ltd from Barbados.  Within the Caribbean Essence fashion pavilion participating companies will be ASD Clothing and Illustration and Keneea Linton Designs Limited from Jamaica; David Andre Collection from Haiti; Heather Jones International from Trinidad and Tobago; Laurenth Industrial from the Dominican Republic; and Kimmystic.Clo and Peta Odini from St. Vincent and the Grenadines.