15 years of Jamaica Poetry Festival
Jamaica Poetry Festival, this year, celebrates its 15th anniversary on Sunday, August 10, 2025.
It returns to University of Technology, Jamaica’s Amphitheatre featuring Professor Mervyn Morris, Mutabaruka, Tony Gregory, Vivian Crawford (JPF 2025 Lifetime Achievement awardee), Yasus Afari, Mik, Hugo Barrington, among others, including drummers and dancers.
In 2011 poet Yasus Afari inaugurated the Jamaica Poetry Festival (JPF) in partnership with Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) as part of Jamaica 50th year of independence. JPF has grown and developed in strength at the Louise Bennett Garden Theatre for nine years.
In 2020, JPF celebrated its 10th anniversary live at TVJ studio in partnership with the RJR Group. It was a virtual staging with poets and performers from 10 countries; namely, Iran, South Korea, UK, USA, Canada, Botswana, Netherlands, Trinidad, Barbados, and of course, Jamaica. It was a huge success.
JPF 2021 was successfully staged, virtually, at Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica, and in 2022 the AC Marriott Hotel, Kingston, was the site as a virtual hybrid format, with support from Sandals and the Jamaica Observer, was pursued. It was headlined by Skip Marley (Bob Marley’s grandson) and the legendary icon Monty Alexander.
JPF 2023 returned to Louise Bennett Garden Theatre and then in 2024 JPF was staged at the University of Technology, Jamaica, which honoured Dr Alfred Sangster and Sean Paul, whose honorary PhD was initiated and negotiated by JPF’s founder Yasus Afari.
This was a homecoming for Yasus Afari, as he produced his first show and did his first poetry performance on the very campus.
A special item for the 2025 edition will be Tribute to Dennis “DJ” Johnson, UTech’s veteran sports pioneer.
The event starts kick off with a free family-friendly creative arts workshop and and open mic.
A charity dinner will be held at UTech Hotel at 4:00 pm with JPF 2025 showtime at 7:00 pm. Proceeds from the JPF 2025 – Visions of Hope Charity Dinner will support the JPF-UTech Students’ Welfare Initiative.
JPF 2022, 2023 and 2024 stagings supported Jamaica Society for the Deaf, Society for the Blind, and Harold Butler (mental health), respectively. The students benefiting are chosen from among students who are academically inclined, disciplined, yet financially challenged.
