The inaugural meeting of the Regional Task Force on Cultural Industries got underway yesterday at the Caricom Secretariat following a simple ceremony to launch the two-day forum.

Yesterday’s launch represented the coming together of various officials from across the region to determine the way forward as it related to cultural industries in the Caribbean. The task force consists of 20 members representing a cross-section of sectors including culture, industry, government, trade and finance, educational institutions and the private sector.

Edwin Carrington, the Secretary-General of Caricom, said that the forum is being held in response “to the persistent call by artists and cultural entrepreneurs in the Region, for their governments to address the developmental needs of this innovative sector.” He said that this issue was highlighted during the recent Carifesta X celebrations.

Carrington added that there is enough evidence to show that the Caribbean’s cultural products are important to the region’s economy, identity and advancement.  He said  that the Task Force has been set up “not to rehash what has been done before”, but to make recommendations  for actions to be taken by the Caricom states to provide cultural entrepreneurs and artists in the Caribbean “with the incentives, financial support, the policies and  the legislation necessary to enable the sector to grow and thrive”.

He also thanked the Caricom Hubs and Spokes Project (which is funded by the European Union and administered by the Commonwealth and Caricom Secretariats) for their financial support of this initiative.

Meanwhile, Ambassador of the Republic of Suriname to Guyana and Caricom, Manorma Soeknandan   read a statement on behalf of Suri-namese President Runaldo Ronaldo Venetiaan. Venetiaan is the Caricom Head of State responsible for culture within the region. While wishing the Task Force a successful meeting, he was optimistic that the deliberations would help facilitate sustainable cultural industries within the Region.

Co-Chairman of the Task Force, St. Lucian Adrian Augier said this meeting represented an important moment for all artists and cultural entrepreneurs in the Caribbean.  He stated that there has been a public lobby for comprehensive strategic policies which would reduce the anxieties of this category.  It was emphasised that it was time to sustain more full-time artists in the region and said that the notion of the “starving artist” is long outdated. The co-chairman added that the task force was looking at implementing changes in the governmental and financial policies in several countries.  Augier serves as Chairman of the Task Force alongside Sidney Bartley of Jamaica.

The establishment of this Regional Task Force on Cultural Industries was mandated by both the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) and the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD).  The forum concludes today.