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Prime Minister Freundel Stuart is pictured (right) presenting a National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA) gold award in the culinary arts to Alvina Thomas in the beverages category during a ceremony at Ilaro Court, Two Mile Hill, St.Michael last Sunday.

The work and performances of Barbadians who participated in this year’s National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA), have been lauded by this country’s Prime Minister, Freundel Stuart.

The accolades came last evening as this island’s awardees were heralded for their achievements during the annual NIFCA awards ceremony at Ilaro Court.

In a specially prepared message, the Prime Minister congratulated all the artists who he said had "unleashed their creativity to reach the pinnacle of excellence at this year’s festival".

Prime Minister Freundel Stuart is pictured (right) presenting a National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA) gold award in visual arts (amateur juniors) to Immanuel Hunte of Combermere School at Ilaro Court last Sunday.

Prime Minister Freundel Stuart is pictured (right) presenting a National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA) gold award in drama/speech for ‘Bajan Green’ in the amateur category to Adrian Green.

Speaking about the importance of the festival, Mr. Stuart noted the event celebrated the vibrancy and ingenuity of Barbadian creative artists across a wide spectrum. He added: "Through their expressions, they have captured the richness of our past, the reality of our present and the hope and promise of the future.

"This festival allows us, as a talented and resourceful people, to express our hopes, fears and joys in a triumphant tumult of colour, sound, words, movement, tastes and textures, demonstrating what it means to be Barbadian. The quality of these expressions is manifest this year in the impressive number of gold, silver and bronze awards duly earned, as well as various incentive and special awards."

The Prime Minister underlined that the creative expression of Barbadians was integral to the development of the country and the fostering of Barbados’ cultural identity.

"I urge you to keep working, ever mindful of the importance of your contributions to the architecture of our society. This year’s festival demonstrates that Barbados is assured a bright future for the arts and cultural industries, and a clear pathway to sustained international prominence for our country’s cultural expression, "he observed.

Mr. Stuart also commended the National Cultural Foundation for mounting another successful festival and encouraged more Barbadians to strive for excellence.

The recipient of the Prime Minister’s Award for Best Original NIFCA entry went to Olivia Hall in the category of dance for a piece performed by ???Of Another Nature’ entitled ???Hajile’. ??Scholarships were awarded to Olivia Hall for dance and Bethany Pile for visual arts. There were dozens of prizes in the culinary, literary and visual arts sections, performing arts, music, and film and video, as well as special and incentive awards.??clashley@barbados.gov.bb

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