President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali is calling on young Guyanese to commit to building a united nation, saying the country’s 60th Independence Anniversary must mark a decisive turning point in how citizens relate to one another across ethnic and cultural lines.
Speaking at the opening of the Guyana Festival 2026 on Friday at the National Stadium in Providence, President Ali invoked the event’s theme – “Song, Soul, and Taste”- to argue that Guyana’s cultural diversity is not a fault line, but its foundation.
“One Guyana does not erase differences . It transforms the difference,” he said, stating that, “Unity is not sameness. Unity is respect for differences. Unity is dignity for all.”
The president traced Guyana’s divisions back to colonial rule, which he said, deliberately engineered division to maintain control.
“Colonialism did not leave us divided by accident. It left us divided by design,” he said, adding that sixty years after independence, the nation is now, “called to heal.”
He urged Guyanese to leave behind the habits of an old order of ethnic comparison, the politics of suspicion, and the notion that national progress is a zero-sum game.
“These are echoes of an old order we should have already outgrown,” he said, before stating, “Let us be brave enough to say that we will honour our independence by relegating these habits to the dustbin of history.”
On the theme of song, the president described Guyana’s musical heritage as evidence of fusion rather than fragmentation – from chutney and calypso to indigenous chants and gospel hymns.
He described soul as the shared resilience woven across all groups, and taste as the hospitality embodied in dishes like pepper pot, roti, cook-up rice, chowmein, and cassava bread.
President Ali also addressed the relationship between prosperity and unity, warning that economic growth alone does not guarantee social cohesion.
“Prosperity without social cohesion can deepen division if not carefully managed,” he said, reaffirming his government’s commitment to inclusive and sustainable development.
“When development is inclusive, unity becomes natural. When development is exclusive, division becomes inevitable“, he said.
Closing his address with a direct appeal to the nation’s youth, President Ali invoked what he called the dream of 1950, a vision of a united political order that predated independence.
“I am not asking you to clear your memory, but to erase the pain and pencil back the future,” he said, declaring, “Let one Guyana not be a dream deferred, but a work in progress. Love, unity, faith, hope – let those be the words that take us forward.”
And with those words, he formally declared the Guyana Festival 2026 open.
Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Susan Rodrigues, credited the revival and concept of the festival to the vision of President Ali.
It was first introduced in 2014 when he was the then Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce.
She explained that it was aimed at showcasing the best of Guyana while also positioning the country as a leading cultural and tourism destination within the Caribbean and wider region.
“This is more than a festival. This is a national statement. A declaration that Guyana is proud of its people, its culture, and its identity and at the centre of this initiative is a very clear message to Guyanese everywhere. Guyana is transforming,” Minister Rodrigues declared.
Also attending the opening ceremony of the Guyana Festival 2026 were First Lady, Arya Ali; Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, other members of cabinet, members of the diplomatic community and hundreds of citizens.
The event continues on Saturday with a Culture and Food Extravaganza Showcase, and closes on Sunday, May 17, with a National Cookout Competition and the One Guyana Concert featuring contemporary local artistes.
Tickets are priced at $1,000 for adults. Children under 12 are admitted free.