The Garma Festival returns from 31 July-3 August, with NITV and SBS delivering comprehensive, multiplatform and multilingual coverage across the four-day event, bringing Australians closer to one of the country's most significant First Nations cultural gatherings.
This year's theme, Bukmak (Everyone), celebrates unity, diversity and connection, inviting all Australians to come together through culture, dialogue and shared understanding. Through NITV and SBS's coverage, audiences across the country will experience the conversations, ceremonies and cultural moments that define Garma, wherever they are.
Across four days, NITV and SBS will broadcast key forums, major announcements and cultural highlights, giving audiences access not only to the festival itself, but also to the storytellers, creatives, cultural leaders and communities whose voices make Garma such an important gathering. Coverage of the iconic Buŋgul cultural ceremony, alongside speeches and discussions from leading voices, will be available on television, streaming, digital, audio and social platforms, bringing Australians closer to Garma than ever before.
Held on Gumatj Country in northeast Arnhem Land, Garma is the country’s largest Indigenous cultural gathering and a leading forum for national conversations on Indigenous affairs. Hosted by the Yothu Yindi Foundation, the festival brings together leaders from government, business, academia and community alongside a celebration of Yolŋu culture, ceremony, art, dance, music and storytelling.
As Supporting Media Partner, NITV continues its longstanding relationship with the Yothu Yindi Foundation, ensuring First Nations stories, voices and cultural expression from Garma reach audiences across Australia.
Coverage
Daily live coverage, updates and highlights will be led by NITV's Indigenous News and Current Affairs team, including Mudburra and Wagadagam woman, Head of Indigenous News and Current Affairs, Natalie Ahmat; Wuthathi and Meriam man, SBS National Indigenous Affairs Editor and host of The Point, John Paul Janke; and Yorta Yorta and Gunditjmara man, NITV News Presenter and Senior Producer, Michael Rennie.
In addition to NITV and SBS's live simulcast coverage of key events, SBS News will report from Garma across SBS World News and digital platforms with Chief Political Correspondent Anna Henderson, on the ground.
For the fifth consecutive year, SBS Audio will broadcast from the festival in multiple languages, with Helen Chen reporting for SBS Chinese and Dilpreet Taggar for SBS South Asian. In addition to NITV Radio, SBS Audio will share news, insights and conversations from Garma connecting Australia’s diverse communities with First Nations stories, perspectives and culture.
As part of the Australia Explained series, SBS Audio will also publish a ‘What is Garma?’ article and audio explainer in more than 50 languages, introducing multilingual audiences to the festival’s significance, history and enduring cultural importance.
NITV on SBS On Demand will be the home for all Garma Festival content, with audiences able to tune into live streams and catch up on forums, speeches, cultural ceremonies and special programming throughout the festival.
Each year, NITV and SBS's coverage of Garma contributes to SBS's Elevate Reconciliation Action Plan commitments, demonstrating the important role media can play in building understanding, connection and respect between First Nations peoples and the broader Australian community.
Program highlights
NITV News: Nula
3-3.30pm, Friday 31 July
Simulcast live on NITV, SBS and SBS On Demand
Natalie Ahmat and the NITV News team present a special half-hour edition of Nula, live from the 26th Garma Festival at Gulkula. Featuring interviews, analysis and stories from the local region, the program captures the voices, stories and spirit of one of Australia’s important cultural gatherings.
Garma Opening Ceremony
4-5.30pm, Friday 31 July
Simulcast live on NITV, SBS and SBS On Demand
Natalie Ahmat and John Paul Janke host the official opening of Garma Festival 2026. Under this year's theme, Bukmak (Everyone), the ceremony celebrates unity, diversity and connection through addresses from Yolŋu leaders and special guests, followed by a vibrant Buŋgul featuring miny'tji (art), manikay (song), dance and storytelling in a powerful expression of culture and connection to Country.
Garma on the Ground with NITV
12pm-3pm, Saturday 1 August and Sunday 2 August
Simulcast live on NITV, SBS and SBS On Demand
Natalie Ahmat, John Paul Janke and Michael Rennie lead NITV's live coverage from the Garma Forum at the Garrtjambal Auditorium.
Bringing audiences the festival’s key speeches, panel discussions and major announcements, the program captures the conversations shaping Australia’s future, alongside cultural insights and expert analysis from NITV’s First Nations journalists. Featuring Yolŋu leaders, Elders, community representatives, academics, politicians, business leaders and young people, the coverage provides context and cultural insight into the issues that matter most to First Nations communities.
Garma Buŋgul
3-4pm, Sunday 2 August
Simulcast on NITV, SBS and SBS On Demand
Filmed on Yolŋu Country against the backdrop of northeast Arnhem Land, Garma Buŋgul offers audiences a rare and respectful window into the world’s oldest living culture by experiencing one of the festival’s most significant traditions.
Through miny'tji (art), manikay (song), dance and storytelling, Yolŋu clans share ancient knowledge, ancestral stories and deep connections to Country, which have been passed down through generations. NITV’s coverage also explores the cultural significance behind each performance, providing audiences with a deeper understanding of the ceremony and its enduring importance.
Garma Festival 2026 In Review (Garma Wrap Program)
5:30pm, Monday 3 August
Simulcast on NITV, SBS and SBS On Demand
Hosted by Natalie Ahmat, this one-hour special revisits the defining moments of Garma Festival 2026, bringing together the festival’s most memorable speeches, performances, cultural highlights and conversations from four days of celebration, ceremony and national dialogue.
Garma Sound Lines
10:35-12:05am, Saturday 8 August
NITV and SBS On Demand
Capturing the powerful music and performances from the Garma Festival.
* All broadcast times are in AEST.
