THE Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce in collaboration with the Muslim community on Sunday held a cultural exhibition at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence, in celebration of Eid-ul-Adha.

Eid-ul-Adha is a three-day celebration which is considered a “festival of sacrifice”. Members of the Muslim community across the world observe this holiday with the singular goal of remembering the willingness of Prophet Abraham to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, as an act of obedience to God.
Speaking to the Guyana Chronicle yesterday, the General Manager of the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG), Mr. Shafdar Alli said that the Muslim organisations involved in the exhibition include the CIOG, The Guyana Islamic Trust, and the Muslim Youth League.
“We’ve now decided that we want to celebrate Eid-ul-Adha in a more festive way, in a more national way and therefore the government has asked us to co-ordinate this event with them. The Muslim community is  showcasing not only the cultural aspect, in terms of the music and clothing, but also will be telling you more about Eid-ul-Adha, in terms of the meat, the sacrifice and the dos and the don’ts of Islam,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Co- Chairman of the event, and representative of the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Mr. Derrick Cummings told this publication that the exhibition is a part of Cultural Tourism. “The ministry is promoting many forms of Tourism: Health Tourism, Community tourism, and this event here today is directly related to Cultural Tourism,” he explained.
Cummings added that taking into consideration that there’s a large Diaspora that would want to come home for the different religious activities, the ministry has decided to partner with the private sector and the relevant organisations, in attempt to attract overseas Guyanese to these events.
“We’ve heard that many of our brothers and sisters who live overseas face certain restrictions in terms of slaughtering of animals and so on, and they would normally send home money to the Muslim communities to slaughter animals, but we want to encourage them to come out,” he informed.
He further stated that this event is about sensitizing the whole nation about what Eid-ul-Adha is all about. According to him, this is the first of many events that will take place, as the ministry has plans for holidays such as Christmas, Diwali and Easter. Cummings explained that the ministry hopes that these various events will also bring about religious tolerance and understanding of each other’s faith, while unifying the nation.