The ACT government has appointed a panel of community representatives with the aim of preventing the commercialisation of the National Multicultural Festival.
Canberra's iconic festival will be back next year, following cancellations for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the three-day festival is expected to be bigger and better than ever, with an expansion into Glebe Park. It is set to be held on February 17 to 19.
ACT Multicultural Affairs Minister Tara Cheyne told annual report hearings on Thursday that the government wanted to ensure the festival was community led after feedback previous years' events had become overly commercial.
Representatives have been chosen from Latin American, Scottish and Pacific Islander cultural groups as well as the Canberra Multicultural Community Forum to have input into the festival.
"I'm working very hard to ensure this remains very much a community-led festival and taking into [account] some feedback from some previous years that it had started to get a little bit of a commercial bent to it," Ms Cheyne said.
"We established a panel reference group and that has been very, very important for us.
"I've met with them as well and they've been very central to helping us map out the footprint and also about entertainment, and other programming. We're looking forward to an anniversary festival that's fitting of a 25th anniversary."
The ACT government has doubled the festival grant funding from $90,000 to 180,000 for the return of event.
The additional funding is set to go towards a larger event, which will be expanded into Glebe Park, and ensuring a COVID-safe environment.
We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.
