Rainbow City Festival, the annual cultural event of the “Big Parish” St. Andrew was launched for the first time since its inception on Saturday the 19th of May at the place where the festival began, the Rainbow Inn, located in Grand bras St. Andrew.
The launch featured performances from the St. Joseph convent drama society, soca artists and exhibitions from various organizations. Akisha Felix, Public Relations Officer of the St. Andrew’s Development Organization (SADO) the body responsible for organizing the event says, the launch was the first for the event since it began in 1986; the first event was held after the closure of the Pearls airport in the 1980’s, because there was a need for a staple event which would boost the tourism industry in the big parish. The owner of the Rainbow Inn during that time invited community members and business owners who were affected by the closure of the airport to the inn, where they put forward ideas and suggestions which birthed the activity.
Speaking at the event were number of stakeholders from the St. Andrews which included community organizations. Representative from the Ministry of Youth, Sports, Culture and the Arts, Permanent Secretary Kevin Andall was present at the launch, also present was Chief executive officer of the Grenada Cultural Foundation, Shirma Wells.
This year’s festival will be held from August 3rd to 6th,2018 and will include events such as following Big Parish Soca Monarch Competition, Short Pants and Soca Event, Big Parish Football Competition, The Rainbow Carnival Queen show and the Anticipated Rainbow City Cultural Event.
