Festa dei popoli Bari 2026

**From May 22 to 24** at the Princigalli Garden in Bari, the **Festa dei Popoli** returns with its 22nd edition, an intercultural festival that promotes the meeting between peoples and cultures.

**A special prologue event, the March of the Peoples**, which on Thursday, May 21, will lead a festive procession through the streets of Bari from Piazza Umberto I and will end at Parco Rossani with a concert by the Salento electro world music quartet Mascarimirì.

Festa dei Popoli: May 22-24, Princigalli Garden, Bari (Mungivacca neighborhood) – Free entry
March of the Peoples: Thursday, May 21, gathering at 6:30 PM at Piazza Umberto I, Bari

The Festa dei Popoli promotes the meeting between peoples and cultures through events, performances, concerts, and sharing of popular traditions. Three full days of celebration, with music, dances, costumes, gastronomy, crafts, activities for children, and a prologue of side events that will involve the city.
“GermogliAzioni” is the theme chosen for this edition of the event, which will take place in the Princigalli Garden in Bari (via Ignazio Lojacono 3, Mungivacca neighborhood, near the Showville multiplex) and is organized by the **Abusuan Intercultural Center**, the **Comboni Missionaries**, and **Cgil Puglia**, with the patronage of the **City of Bari** and the collaboration of an important network of associations, foreign communities, and educational institutions. This theme encapsulates hope but also invites everyone to collectively become seeds for the growth of a healthy community of peace, where there are no limits or barriers, and where the encounter between cultures is seen as a precious resource. It is a call and a hope, particularly aimed at the new generations, so that tomorrow's adults cultivate a real awareness of significant social, cultural, and environmental issues while maintaining a critical eye but, at the same time, an empathetic perspective, keeping alive the reflection on what happens around them and in the world.

Like every year, the Festa dei Popoli is the result of a significant network and relational work woven with many local associations, which daily commit to creating and strengthening bonds and roots: all with the shared goal of making the city of Bari an increasingly intercultural community, promoting respect for the fundamental rights of all human beings: equality, dignity, work, and the protection of both the material and immaterial heritage of communities. More than 25 participating groups are indeed involved, representing 15 communities. All together, without distinction of nationality, but simply representing a people, a community of individuals with their own culture. Additionally, over 10 associations and supportive partners support the project, 10 schools are involved in the metropolitan area of Bari, and there are 4 important environmental partners. Throughout all the days of the Festa, there will be stands featuring culinary delights with typical dishes from the foreign communities involved in the event: food also becomes an opportunity for connection, a universal language to tell stories of distant cultures.

**THE FESTIVAL PROGRAM**
The prologue: Waiting for Festa dei Popoli 2026 and The March of the Peoples
This edition of the Festa dei Popoli has its prologue “Waiting for Festa dei Popoli”: a series of collateral events leading up to the festival, capable of gathering associations, students, and citizens in anticipation of the three-day festival, which began at the start of May. On Sunday the 17th, there is an appointment at 10 AM in the Princigalli Garden for two hours of green clean-up, an activity designed to collectively prepare the space to welcome the festival and to raise user awareness for conscious use, thanks to the collaboration between the Abusuan intercultural center, the Plastic Free association, and Amiu Puglia and Consulta Ambiente. On Monday the 18th at 7 PM, a collective liturgical moment will take place at the parish of Santissimo Redentore in Bari, with a Mass presided over by the Archbishop of Bari-Bitonto, Monsignor Giuseppe Satriano, attended by all foreign religious personnel engaged in their ministry within the diocese. From Monday the 18th to Wednesday the 20th, the Auditorium of the Casa dei Padri Comboniani in Bari will host a workshop for students dedicated to world music, led by Mamadou Coulibaly – a multi-instrumentalist from Burkina Faso who will create an orchestra with multi-ethnic sounds using instruments like the balafon – and Federico Lagana, a Salento percussionist specialized in the Italian frame drum and Mediterranean frame drums. The most awaited and symbolic event of the prologue will be the March of the Peoples, which will take place on Thursday the 21st in observance of the “World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development”: the march will start at 7 PM (with gathering at 6:30 PM) from Piazza Umberto I to reach Parco Rossani, through a long, festive, and colorful procession, during which remarks will be made by Archbishop of Bari-Bitonto, Monsignor Giuseppe Satriano, the Councillor for Culture and Knowledge of the Puglia Region, Silvia Miglietta, the Mayor of Bari, Vito Leccese, the Rector of the University of Bari, Roberto Bellotti, and the President of the Puglia Diaspora Coordination, Ana Estrela. Upon its arrival at Parco Rossani, the March of the Peoples will culminate in a concert by the Salento quartet Mascarimirì. Comprised of Claudio “Cavallo” Giagnotti (vocals, tamburreddhu, programs, and ethnic winds), Gabriele Martino (vocals, Electric Mandolin), Alessandro Schito “Scarpina” (vocals, tamburreddhu), and Matteo Tornesello (vocals and electric guitar), this Apulian band shines on the Italian and international world music scene thanks to a unique and original sound, the result of more than 25 years of “tradinnovation”: this is the idea of electro world music of its leader Claudio Giagnotti, a musician and producer from Salento of Romani origins, who founded the musical group in 1998.

**The Festa dei Popoli 2026**

The three days of the Festa dei Popoli 2026, which will take place entirely in the Princigalli Garden of Bari, will open on **Friday, May 22**, from 6 PM to midnight, with a day primarily dedicated to students: in the afternoon, the stage will host performances made for the occasion by the ten participating schools and the outcomes of the musical workshop that took place during the prologue days. Musical shows will follow: Besmert Mamadou Coulibaly and Federico Lagana (the first a multi-instrumentalist and activist from Burkina Faso, the second a Salento percussionist); Kora Connection (a contemporary musical reinterpretation of ancestral songs from the Yoruba); Sonido Estelar (European electronics, baresità, and Cumbia rhythms); concurrently with the activities and performances, an area of the Princigalli Garden will be set aside for meetings and readings, where the following activities will take place: at 5 PM, a reading “Games from the world,” curated by migrant students from the Squola Senza Confini Penny Wirton; at 5:45 PM, the presentation of the book “Tales from the Sea,” with the author Valeria Patruno, organized by the associations GEP - Group Educating for Peace, Ballerio, and Le Aquile di Seta; at 7:15 PM, the conference “CPR - Permanent Centers for Repatriation: between suspended rights and inefficiency” with participation from Davide Giove (President ARCI Puglia), Luigi Paccione (lawyer), Giovanna Iacovone (Deputy Mayor of Bari), Domenico Ficco (General Secretary Cgil Bari), moderated by Father Corrado De Robertis, organized by CGIL Puglia, Abusuan, and Comboni Missionaries. For the little ones, a workshop “Views of Lives,” starting at 6 PM at the Migrantes stand of the Archdiocese of Bari-Bitonto.
The second day of the festival, **Saturday, May 23**, from 6 PM to midnight, will feature performances by: Bangla Education Center (songs, dances, readings by children from Bangladesh); Russian Association Raduga (performance of Russian dances); Le Ali di Iside (dances from around the world); Alma Terra (animation with circle dances); Samira Oriental Academy (dances from around the world) and Made in 237 (fashion show of clothes from Cameroon), Le Aquile di Seta - Casa Rozalba (Albanian dances). On stage, starting at 8:30 PM, will be performances by: tribute band I Maltesi, which reinterprets songs by Fabrizio De André inspired particularly by arrangements from PFM and the singer-songwriter’s last tour; the band fabioeledistanze, a musical project that mixes soft-jazz, elegant melodies, and electronics, with lyrics exploring human intimacy and fragility; concluding with the performance of Senegalese percussionist Ibou Mboye with sounds of afro house, amapiano, reggaeton, dembow, and dancehall. In the meeting area, from 5 PM, a conference on “The policies of the Puglia Region for the integration of foreign citizens and the fight against labor exploitation and the role of Integrated Social Poles within the interregional Su.Pr.Eme.2 Program” organized by the Citizen Security Section, Policies for Migration, and Social Anti-mafia of the Puglia Region and Nova Consortium, with participation from institutional representatives of the conference organizers; followed at 6:30 PM by the conference organized by CGIL Puglia, Abusuan, and Comboni Missionaries on “Peace and No War: testimonies from the peoples” featuring Shady Alizadeh (Women Life Freedom movement - Iran), Oksana Rohova (United for Ukraine association), Chie Fernandez Julio (Cuban community), Mohammed Afaneh (Palestinian Community in Puglia and Basilicata), Vito Micunco (Network of Peace Committees in Puglia), Ugo Villani (Emeritus Professor of International Law at the University of Bari “Aldo Moro”). For kids, at 5:30 PM, at the Estrelas Bread and Food stand, there will be a presentation of the children’s book “Alicinha,” with author Laina Estrela, followed by a cookie-decorating workshop; at the Circondario stand, at 7 PM, there will be a presentation of the book “Playing in the World,” with author Dario Abrescia for those working in early childhood.

The same format applies for the third and final day, which, **Sunday, May 24**, from 6 PM to midnight, will host performances on stage from: DEBI – Culture Organizations of Bangladesh (performance of Bengali dances and songs); In...canti di donne (folk songs from around the world); COFIRP (ethnic dances, parades, readings from the Philippines); United for Ukraine (ethnic music from Ukraine); Made in 237 (fashion show of traditional African clothing); Quelli del Taiko (performance of traditional Japanese drums); El Barrio Libertad (flamenco performances); a performance of Balkan music by the band World Music Project, accompanied by dances from the ArtiDea culture association. Starting at 8:30 PM, also on stage, performances by: Tukurù Project (a musical project that blends desert-blues, afrobeat, funk, and hip-hop, with sounds that unite Africa with the Mediterranean); the band Quadraccio & BariBanda (a musical project that combines the popular traditions of Bari with modern sounds).
The program for the meeting area at Princigalli Garden: at 5:30 PM, storytelling “Crosses from the Sea,” in memory of the Cutro shipwreck, curated by the PER.I.P.L.O. association. Following that, at 6:30 PM, the conference organized by Origens and the Diaspora Coordination in Puglia on the theme “Sister Cities across the Sea: Bari and Guangzhou, 40 years of friendship” featuring Vito Leccese (Mayor of Bari), Vitandrea Marzano (Director of the Citizen Security Section, Policies for Migration and Social Anti-mafia of the Puglia Region), Ming Chen (Vice President of the Italian Diaspora Coordination for International Cooperation - CIDCI), Gianpaolo Camaggio (member VIII Council of Guangzhou People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries), representatives of the Chinese community in Bari. Throughout the afternoon, on the garden lawn, there will be a workshop of dances from around the world curated by ArtiDea Cultura, while at the Circondario stand, starting at 6 PM, there will be a children’s workshop “Games from the World,” followed by an interactive play space.

During all days of the Festa dei Popoli 2026, at the stands and on the lawn, the following will also be active:
- A collage workshop with sand by artist Cheikh Tidiane Mbaye at the Senegal stand;
- A workshop on afro braids at the Ivory Coast stand;
- A workshop for creating turbans, bandanas, cake carriers, shopping bags curated by the Jubbo atelier;
- Stand of the Comboni Missionary Sisters: table of storybooks from around the world.
- A sound improvisation workshop at the Banderumorose stand (only on Friday and Sunday).
Web: www.abusuan.com