UWI Principal Calls For Solidarity And Action At Pan African Festival Launch
As Trinidad and Tobago prepares to mark Emancipation Day, organisers of the Pan African Festival TT are once again using culture, education, and dialogue to reconnect the region with its African heritage.
Formally launched in 1992, the Pan African Festival TT has long highlighted the richness and diversity of African culture and its integration into the Caribbean.
Under the theme Igniting African Consciousness: Dismantling Colonial Legacies, the 2026 festival aims to continue celebrating Africa outside of Africa, with a series of events beginning in June and culminating around Emancipation Day.
Campus Principal of the University of the West Indies, Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, reflected on the lasting impact of colonialism, particularly its role in dividing societies.
« The colonial project understood that divided populations are easier to control, but consciousness demands that we reject those inherited divisions. Our task is to build solidarity rather than scapegoating. We cannot find justice while reproducing hostility. We cannot heal while deepening division. We cannot dismantle colonial legacies by maintaining colonial mentalities towards one another. So I ask that we build partnerships and bridges. »
She also underscored the importance of education as a tool for liberation, while cautioning that access to free education alone is not enough.
« True education must cultivate critical consciousness. It must teach people not simply how to work, but how to think, how to question, how to challenge, how to imagine new futures. Consciousness without action is insufficient. Awareness alone cannot dismantle systems. We must act. We need to reform institutions. We must confront structural discrimination. »
Meanwhile, Ghana’s High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago, William Anani-Abotsi, praised the festival’s mission, noting its alignment with efforts to strengthen ties between Africa and the Caribbean.
« Together, Ghana and Trinidad and Tobago can light the way by uniting Africa and the Caribbean to show the world what excellence looks like when rooted in unity, education, culture, and a shared commitment to preserving our history and uplifting future generations. »
The festival begins in June with EWA Afrika, an Emancipation fashion showcase curated by designer Richard Young, under the theme, A Flare for Freedom.
