The glitz, the glam and the culture was on full display Tuesday as Toronto’s Caribbean Carnival kicked off at Nathan Phillip’s Square.
The event celebrates Caribbean culture, history and diversity while attracting hundreds of thousands of tourists from all over the globe each year. However, for this year’s event, it appears organizers are being hit with financial challenges.
“It has been extremely difficult. Our costs for security for example (have) gone up by 300 per cent” said FMC chair Jennifer Hirelehey.
She adds programming, event infrastructure and supplies have also become more expensive due to inflation. Hirelehey is concerned this will impact staff’s ability to run the carnival in the upcoming years.
“We cannot put on this carnival year after year in funding deficits.”
The event attracted roughly 1.5 million people in 2022. This year, organizers say they are expecting close to 2 million people to attend the festival. Hirelehey says FMC is asking for funding from all levels of government.
Global News reached out to Toronto police inquiring about the costs of officers to patrol the event, and why there has been a reported increase. Staff said they were looking into the request, but did not provide an answer prior to deadline.
Johanna Grant, the founder of Freedom Mas Band, says inflation has also made revelers’ masquerade costumes more expensive.
“It has made the prices go up and it’s made the customers a bit squirmier to purchase,” Grant said.
Other big summer events, like the Festival of South Asia, say they are also feeling the pinch.
“It is a challenge because of rising costs. The expenses have gone up to have this festival organized the way we have done it in the past,” said Chand Kapoor, chair of the Gerrard India Bazaar BIA.
Kapoor says much of the expenses go towards closing the streets for the event, which attracts up to 300,000 people, and managing the crowd with security. He adds there’s been less sponsorship support since the pandemic.
“It’s also a challenge to get the sponsors because things have become very tight in the market.”
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