The Ministry of Culture and Community Development has formally introduced a new Board of Commissioners for the National Carnival Commission (NCC), signalling a renewed focus on governance and transparency in the lead-up to Carnival 2026.
At a ceremony held on Tuesday 16 July under the theme We Jammin Still!, Culture Minister Michelle Benjamin officially installed the new board. Peter Kanhai, General Secretary of the United National Congress (UNC), has been appointed chairman, replacing longtime head Gypsy (Winston Peters). Media and communications advisor Kevan Gibbs takes up the role of deputy chairman.
Other board members include Pan Trinbago president Beverly Ramsey-Moore, TUCO president Ainsley King, three-time Soca Monarch Iwer George, former Chutney Soca Monarch Imran Beharry, attorney Robert Mitchell, Tobago Carnival Bands’ Association president Mark Ayen, and John Michael Ali-Bocus, a former UNC candidate.
In his inaugural address, Kanhai outlined the commission’s immediate priorities, chief among them a full review of the NCC’s finances. With the fiscal year ending on Wednesday 31 July, he noted that only eight audited reports have been submitted since the NCC’s establishment in 1991. “We want to look at accountability and transparency… while building the Carnival product and enhancing it,” he said.
Minister Benjamin echoed this vision, urging the board to elevate Trinidad & Tobago’s Carnival as “the greatest show on Earth”, and emphasising its vital role in job creation, cultural expression and economic growth.
Key institutional goals identified by the board include improved governance, deeper community engagement, increased support for both traditional and emerging art forms, and enhanced global marketing efforts to position Carnival 2026 on the world stage firmly.
