THE GRANDE FESTIVAL 2027
A Three-Day Celebration of Design, Ideas and Possibility
The CDF Grande Festival is the annual gathering at the heart of the Cameroon Design Festival. For three days, designers, creative professionals, businesses, students, innovators, institutions, and the public come together to experience design in its many forms and discover the people and ideas building what comes next. The festival transforms the city into a living platform for exhibitions, conversations, workshops, installations, performances, collaborations, and a pleasing journey, creating an environment where design can be seen, understood, questioned, and experienced.
The experience goes beyond simply looking at finished work. Visitors will encounter designers and their processes, discover emerging talent, explore exhibitions from Cameroon and other parts of Africa, participate in practical workshops, listen to conversations that connect design with business, technology, culture, and economic development, and experience installations that invite them to interact with their surroundings in new ways.
EXHIBITIONS
The Grande Festival will feature two major exhibitions exploring the breadth, relevance, and impact of contemporary design.
Shaped by Design brings together designers from West and Central Africa, the wider continent, and the Diaspora, showcasing work designed by human needs, cultural identity, local materials, and global challenges.
Design & Development Exhibition highlights Cameroon-developed products, digital, fashion, spatial, and artistic solutions that demonstrate how design can improve everyday life, strengthen businesses, support innovation, and contribute to Cameroon’s economic development.
Together, the exhibitions offer a powerful view of design as both a reflection of who we are and a tool for propelling what comes next.
TALKS & CONVERSATIONS
The Talks program brings voices from design, business, education, policy, and culture into conversation.
Through panels, fireside chats, and keynote sessions, speakers explore how design intersects with business, economy, identity, and the future of work. Non-design experts share their work and explore how design plays a critical role in driving innovation and advancement within their industries.
These conversations are open, reflective, and forward-looking. They are planned to challenge assumptions, share lived experiences, and inspire collective action.
ACTIVATIONS & COLLABORATIONS
Where ideas come alive.
Across the festival grounds, brands, designers, and partners create interactive moments that invite visitors to touch, test, experience, and engage. These activations combine brand expression and community interaction, turning the audience into participants, curiosity into connection, and observation into immersive experience.
Every activation is designed to initiate dialogue, inspire discovery, and leave a memorable impression.
NEXT-GEN DESIGNER SHOWCASE
The Next-Gen Designers Showcase is dedicated to emerging designers, students, and young practitioners contributing to the future of design in Cameroon. This programme provides a platform for new voices to present ideas, prototypes, and projects that respond to contemporary challenges and opportunities.
Aligned with the theme Design as a Driver of Economic Development, the showcase highlights how young designers are rethinking materials, systems, technologies, and cultural narratives to create impact. It supports talent development, visibility, and mentorship, reinforcing the importance of investing in and celebrating the next generation as a foundation for sustainable creative and economic growth.
CDF AWARDS
The CDF Awards recognise excellence, innovation, and impact across the design ecosystem. The awards celebrate designers, studios, organisations, and initiatives whose work demonstrates the power of design to contribute to economic growth and development.
Grounded in the Founding Edition theme, the awards highlight projects that address social challenges, strengthen local industries, promote cultural heritage, and drive innovation across disciplines. By recognising outstanding contributions, the CDF Awards aim to elevate design practice, inspire future work, and reinforce the role of design as a strategic tool in building innovation in Cameroon.