Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Manniram Prashad, on Friday told the media that the Ministry will be hosting several seminars throughout the country for pageant coordinators and organisers in light of the many substandard pageants that are being staged.
He also noted that the judging process being used in many of these pageants are not in accordance with international standards.
He cited recent examples of pageants organisers and franchise holders selecting persons of their choice to represent Guyana.
Minister Prashad said when this done, it gives Guyana a “bad name” and the true talent and beauty of this country is not  showcased.
The Tourism Minister said that candidates participating in any pageant should be well trained and should be knowledgeable about the country’s history and current events, “so when they go abroad to compete in international pageants, they would be confident enough to make impacting presentations about Guyana’s heritage and culture.”
In order ensure that pageants are being held according to accepted standards, Minister Prashad said that the Ministry of Tourism will only support pageants based on the assurance that trained and skilled coordinators and organisers operate under the requisite guidelines.
“By abiding by these simple guidelines, a suitable candidate would be able to win over the public and proceed with the blessings of the Ministry of Tourism,” Minister Prashad said.
Whenever an event is organised, for instance a pageant, it’s for persons from all the 10 Administrative Regions of Guyana, and not from Georgetown only, he noted.
“The pageants must be of high standards in order to portrait Guyana in a glorious way, since tourism is on the increase,” he said.
Another concern for the Minister is the non-delivery of prizes promised. “At the end of the pageant the organiser and the franchise holder disappear and leave the contestants with nothing after they would have worked so hard preparing themselves for the event.”
In this regard, Minister Prashad is urging the private sector and the general public not to recognise or support any pageant or any person leaving the country to represent Guyana without the consent and blessing of the Government of Guyana or the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce. (GINA)