The Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda has ordered that all outstanding payments owed to service providers for Carnival and Independence activities be cleared by Friday, following concerns raised about delays.

Director General of Communications in the Prime Minister’s Office, Maurice Merchant, said the issue was discussed during Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting with officials from the Festivals Commission and the Ministry of Creative Industries present.

“The matter of outstanding bills to be cleared by the Commission and the Ministry was also discussed with Cabinet,” Merchant said, noting that concerns had been raised publicly about unpaid sums.

He said Cabinet “instructed them that all outstanding bills that were recently raised in the public domain, the PAN outstanding debts, debts relating to Independence, must be cleared by tomorrow, Friday.”

Merchant added that service providers connected to last year’s Schools Panorama and the recent Independence festivities should expect contact from the ministry.

“In the first instance, the school Panorama from last year and also the recently held Independence festivities should expect a call from the Ministry of Creative Industries for payment, because Cabinet has instructed that this must not be an issue going into next week,” he said.

The directive comes as the government moves ahead with a restructuring of cultural governance, under which the Festivals Commission will assume primary responsibility for organizing and producing the One Nation Concert and Antigua Carnival, while the Ministry of Creative Industries will oversee other cultural initiatives.

Merchant said the separation of responsibilities is intended to “improve efficiency, reduce bureaucratic delays, and ensure that large-scale productions receive the level of technical and professional oversight required.”

Cabinet indicated that settling outstanding obligations is essential to restoring confidence among vendors and performers as preparations begin for the next festival season.