Facing a hefty $30 million bill to host this year’s Emancipation Festival, the African Cultural & Development Association (ACDA) is making a passionate plea to the country’s largest companies, particularly the oil giants, to support the authentic celebration of African culture in Guyana.
Speaking at the festival’s official launch on Tuesday, ACDA’s Chief, Eric Phillips, did not mince words about the financial gap the association must bridge each year to keep Emancipation celebrations alive and meaningful.
“It costs $30 million GYD to celebrate Emancipation. The Government of Guyana gives us $3 million — the rest we have to raise ourselves,” Phillips told the News Room.
Despite a shortfall, Phillips noted that the festival has secured “more than [what the government gave]” from the Gladstone family — descendants of the notorious 19th-century British slave-owning dynasty who recently issued a public apology for their ancestors’ role in slavery.
But with the 187th anniversary of Emancipation on August 01 fast approaching, ACDA’s biggest challenge remains securing substantial private sector backing for a national holiday that, Phillips says, too many corporate sponsors still neglect in favour of other events.
“Some of these new oil giants are preoccupied with cricket and other events that don’t promote pure African culture,” Phillips said pointedly.
“We engaged two major ones last year — we didn’t even get a response. This year we’ve done the same. We hope by this weekend we’ll know.”
With plans to fly in celebrated international acts like Maxi Priest and his band from the UK, ACDA says the cost of truly honouring the sacrifices and survival of African ancestors is far beyond the reach of the government grant.
“This is the dilemma we have,” Phillips explained.
“Unlike Indian organisations and events where you can go to your private sector and get funding, we don’t have that type of African-owned business community in Guyana. If you look at the top thousand companies in Guyana, you might find five African-owned ones.”
He pointed out that in Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados, Emancipation is treated as the most significant holiday on the calendar — with governments pouring in major resources. Yet in Guyana, he says, many people and many companies still underestimate its importance.
Phillips lamented the “lack of civic education” in schools, media and even universities, warning that ignorance about the past leaves the nation “rudderless.”
The ACDA head said true culture is not simply entertainment or a catchy slogan, it is about shared identity, self-respect and healing deep historical wounds.
“Cricket does not define our culture,” Phillips said bluntly. “Our music, dance, sculpture, theatre, fashion — they are the soul of who we are.”
As Guyana marks 400 years since Africans were first brought here in bondage, Phillips stressed that this year’s Emancipation must be about more than symbols and slogans – it must be a turning point for recognition, reparations and real national unity.
He singled out ExxonMobil and other major corporations, urging them to come forward now to help carry the true weight of this moment in the country’s story.
“I call on companies such as Exxon to come to the table and participate in this most significant cultural event — not only for Guyana but for the entire Caribbean,” Phillips declared.
And as the descendants of the Gladstones work to acknowledge their ancestors’ role in slavery by directly supporting Emancipation in Guyana, Phillips hopes others — especially those who profit from Guyana’s new wealth — will finally understand what this holiday means to the African community.
“Let emancipation be about healing,” he said. “Let it be about recognising that we are one nation.”
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