The previous FestPAC was held in Hawaii in June 2024. Photo credit: RNZ Pacific/Tiana Haxton.
Source: RNZ Pacific
New Caledonia has been officially endorsed as the host of the 14th Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC14) in 2028.
This follows back-to-back meetings of the Council of Pacific Art and Culture and the Pacific Ministers for Culture last week at the Pacific Community (SPC) headquarters in Nouméa.
New Caledonia’s bid to host FestPAC14 was lodged in 2023.
The previous FestPAC was held in Hawaii, in June 2024.
New Caledonia did not send a delegation as it was gripped by destructive civil unrest.
The last time the French territory hosted a FestPAC was in 2000.
As part of the endorsement process, a traditional handover ceremony took place in Nouméa, which officially passes a paddle (the festival emblem), to New Caledonia’s Culture Minister Mickaël Forrest.
He also signed an official memorandum of agreement with SPC Director General Stuart Minchin to clearly define the specific roles and responsibilities of the host and of the regional organisation, which has been in charge of the event (held every four years) since its inception in 1972.
Minister Forrest says FestPAC14 is an opportunity to celebrate New Caledonia’s shared Pacific identity.
Speaking to local public broadcaster NC la 1ère, he says arrangements are being made to identify all the potential sites to host the Festival, while also involving all of New Caledonia’s traditional chiefs and their respective areas of responsibility.
“This will be much more than just an artistic event,” Minister Forrest says.
“It will be a celebration of our shared Pacific identity, a platform for our young talents, a venue for intergenerational transmission and a showcase to tell the world the vitality and the strength of our cultures.”
The Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture is regarded as the Pacific’s main celebration and gathering of the diverse cultures within the region.
