music performance from both local and international artists, the annual Calabar Carnival, Boat regatta, Fashion shows (introduced in 2016), Beauty pageant (Miss Africa introduced in 2016) Christmas Village, traditional dances and the annual Ekpe Festival that brings in thousands of tourists.) Other activities that make up this carnival include essay writing competitions, which involves both secondary school and tertiary students. These competitions are designed to promote reading culture among the youths of the State and inculcate in them the carnival culture. Participants The event hosts local and international musicians, actors and actresses, politicians and other notable men and women. Some of the entertainers who have attended the carnival include Lucky Dube, Akon, Fat Joe, Young Jeezy, Nelly, Kirk Franklin. Festivals and themes 2013 The 2013 Calabar Carnival was focused on Nigerian artists. 2015 The theme for the 2015 Calabar carnival was Climate change. According to the Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade, the carnival was host to more than 15 countries. That year, he adopted beauty queens to form a band known as the governor's band. 2017 Migration has a long history in Africa, as it has also been the home of many cultures for many centuries. 2018 The 15th edition of the carnival held in 2018. The then Governor of Cross River State Benedict Ayade introduced the theme "Africanism" to tell the African story from the African perspective. The theme was also meant to show that Africa is free from Western Colonization and no longer under their political and economic control. 2019 The 2019 Calabar Carnival theme "Humanity" was created to challenge mankind that every human being has a right to existence. The theme was also meant to charge mankind not to be a source of pain to another person's life. Apart from dancing and displaying the culture of the African people, the carnival aimed at addressing the world's problems, one of which is inhumanity. As Governor Benedict Ayade flagged the year's theme - Humanity he emphasized the need for all to shun war as it does not depict the true personalities of those who claim to love humanity. 2020 In 2020, the Cross River State House of Assembly called for a suspension of the festival due to the coronavirus pandemic and restrictions on massive gatherings in the country as well as the mass destruction and looting of goods and infrastructure by hooligans under the auspices of the #EndSARS