This was the first time that Antigua, British Virgin Islands, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Réunion, St. Kitts, and St. Lucia competed in the Pageant.
Martinique's delegate, Catherine Marlin, was disqualified for being under the minimum age (she was 17 years old) and Manolya Onur, from Turkey, was not allowed to compete twice (she had already been in the 1976 competition).