GOSPELFEST BARBADOS has the potential to attract more than 1 000 visitors to Barbados.
This is the view of manager, planning and reporting, at the Barbados Tourism Authority (BTA), Bernard Phillips.
He said that about 200 people were booked to fly in from overseas for the May 21 to 29 festival, but those figures could be much higher.
Phillips was speaking at the launch of the festival at Divi Southwinds Beach Resort in Christ Church yesterday.
He said the BTA promoted Gospelfest, which it had created, as one of the dynamic festivals.
“We are of the view that our tourism product is not only about sand and sea; it is also about events as well,” he noted. “That’s why we work very closely with the producers for the bigger festivals in Barbados to ensure that they are successful and also to ensure that greater numbers come into the destination.”
To that end, Phillips said the BTA was in discussion over the years with the festival’s executive producer Adrian Agard to see how those numbers could be increased.
During his presentation, Agard said he had told the BTA that there would be no need to support the festival if Gospelfest was incapable of attracting people to Barbados.
Agard thanked the sponsors who continued to back the festival in the tough economic times. Along with other sponsors pledging continued support, commercial director for Digicel, Alex Tasker, said Gospelfest was a “solid brand” and important not only to the faith-based organisations.
He also revealed that Digicel registered support for the Gospelfest in its budget even before the request was made.
Noting that there had been an “A-list” of artistes as headliners over the years, Agard reported that this year’s line-up included William McDowell, VaShawn Mitchell, Michelle McKinney-Hammond, a 60-voice choir from New York and a number of regional and local acts.
He said he and his team were committed to bringing the festival and would continue to do so as long as there was a need.
