AFROFEST Organizers Seek Fair Path Forward

By Neil Armstrong

Music Africa of Canada Inc., the organizer of AFROFES, the largest free African music festival in North America, says the annual event is at risk and has called on the community to contact the mayor and city councillors to voice their concern.

The festival is usually held on the second weekend of July but the date was changed to August 14-16 due to World Cup-related activities in Woodbine Park. An online post by Music Africa notes that the festival will return to the park in July 2027.

 “AFROFEST has proudly operated as a staple of Toronto’s cultural fabric for nearly four decades. We take public safety incredibly seriously and have actively engaged with the City to address their crowd management concerns,” says Peter Toh, executive and artistic director of Music Africa.

Terry Ricketts, general manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation at the City of Toronto, says they have been working with the organizers.

“AFROFEST has been a cornerstone of Toronto’s cultural landscape for nearly 40 years, and because of this we have been working with the organizers to explore options that would allow the festival to proceed safely. As attendance projections of approximately 45,000 people per day is almost three times the safe capacity of Woodbine Park, the City is unable to approve the permit for this location. We’re committed to working with organizers to adjust the event size or identify a suitable safe venue.”Toh said while Music Africa anticipates a total turnover of approximately 45,000 attendees over the course of a day, this does not mean 45,000 people are in the park simultaneously.

“Due to the natural ‘in-and-out’ flow of festival-goers, the real-time crowd size is lower. Furthermore, we have explicitly committed to capping the active, on-site capacity at 17,000 at any given time, strictly adhering to the safe capacity limits required by the City for Woodbine Park.”

However, he said despite their willingness to reduce capacity and implement strict safety 
measures, the City’s current conditions create severe operational bottlenecks.

“For instance, we have been instructed not to promote the event or move forward with ticketing, yet we are asked to meet all conditions before a permit application is formally considered. This leaves us with no guarantee or commitment from the City that a permit will be issued even after compliance, putting a massive financial and organizational risk on a historic, community-led non-profit organization.”

Toh said Music Africa remains fully committed to working cooperatively with Parks, Forestry and Recreation to find a viable path forward that keeps AFROFEST at Woodbine Park safely this August.

On June 18, the organizers held an urgent community meeting to discuss the permit challenges, proposed City of Toronto conditions, capacity restrictions and ticketing requirements, the impact on artists, vendors, businesses, and the community, and next steps and community advocacy.

“We have submitted detailed operational plans, safety measures, and compliance documents. We are not refusing to comply, we are asking for fairness, clarity, and a realistic pathway to success,” they said.

Established in 1990, Music Africa is a not-for-profit community-based organization that promotes African music in Toronto through its annual flagship music festival, AFROFEST.

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