GUYANA Fashion Week (GFW) is more than a festival of fashion designed to position fashion wares for sale, export and networking. Its antecedent annual weekend events have grown to assume a responsible role in national event tourism thrusts, so complimentary to Guyana’s destination marketing initiatives.

Sonia Noel and Fashion Week Models

Not only do such activities promote economic prosperity and imbue nation-building pride, but they ultimately facilitate youth empowerment drives.
To make this year’s Guyana Fashion Week event even more exciting and massive, CEO Sonia Noel is hosting yet another audition today, at the Water Chris Hotel, between 14:00 hrs and 17:00 hrs.
Noting that GFW has become a hallmark occasion, Ms. Noel explained that the next stage is critical for the development of the local fashion industry. She commended those companies that are contributing to the growth of the young creative sector, and encouraged others to join her team as it continues to build the industry that can contribute to Guyana’s economy.
She added that, in developing societies, the latter greatly determines modern, sustainable development action, which is given further impetus by the consequent choices at diversifying the traditional income-generating practice.
GFW has always sought to enlist young, creative minds in productive activity within the cultural industry, which is geared towards initiating new career path opportunities. The youths’ decision to engage in imaginative, meaningful and relevant revenue-earning enterprise in order to ensure their current and future wellbeing not only identifies with the United Nations’ ongoing commitment to attitudinal, structural and cultural processes of youth empowerment, but honours and services contemporary development strategies, the principle of which is based on the economic mandate – development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
Ms. Noel notes that GFW has been able to successfully harness, unearth and steer much hidden talent through the multi-faceted programmes. She said the GFW volunteer department involves youth in mobilizing social campaigns and environmental issues.
These young persons have given vitality to our anti-domestic violence drive by defining slogans and participating in non-violent protests. As such, leadership qualities were manifested and nurtured through the proactive commitment of a wide cross-section of motivated youths.
GFW’s consistent consciousness of environmental issues has endorsed and advanced the notion of ‘green living’ and community action in effecting sustainable, holistic, and inter-disciplinary socio-economic stability; so that young persons under its aegis have adopted and inculcated progressive, viable, and worthwhile habits and systems.
GFW has accepted its ancillary role in supporting public and private sector outreach interests, serving the national good, and has also been able to woo corporate social responsibility in empowering its own youth-driven initiatives.
GFW’s advocacy of healthy lifestyle practices is corroborated by its attention to its AIDS awareness agenda and its involvement in facilitating cancer awareness. Both campaigns are ongoing and evolving, and have encouraged intelligent, innovative and ingenious application of fresh, young creative talent.
It is clear that an explicit youth agenda is paramount, evidenced by the repeated large numbers of young persons who participate in its events annually.
Indeed, GFW is about style, fashion, beauty, and the arts. However, this is not to be appreciated only in an esoteric sense, according to Noel. She feels it is about validating the creative industry as integral to economic diversification, so pivotal to current economic survival strategies. The work of GFW and its spin-off activities – Guyana Model Search, Designer/Stylist Portfolio, and the Sonia Noel Foundation for the Creative Arts – have all sought to elevate the status of practitioners within the cultural industries, as well as to position the fruits of their labour for unique sales opportunities.
Philosophy behind this urgent and burgeoning momentum is to identify its existence within a feasible and lucrative economic sector. As such, the youth can appreciate their role in defining their future through creative endeavours, ultimately equipping them with a sense of authority in negotiating rules of socio-economic engagement for future generations.
Ms. Noel makes special mention of Courts Guyana Inc. for their incisive and dedicated approach to youth empowerment in Guyana through their active and hands-on involvement with Guyana Fashion Week over the years.
Designing, modelling, make-up artistry, hair styling, art direction, photography, set design, graphic arts, performing arts, visual arts, culinary arts, events coordination, production management, public relations/communications administration, hospitality services, lighting and sound design, wardrobe planning, garment manufacture, accessory/craft design, millinery design, footwear design, scripting, feature writing and salesmanship are all parts of an influential network of associations which comprise the creative powerhouse of activities that is Guyana Fashion Week.
With this said, it is only obvious that consummate youth empowerment is championed within its purview. Ultimately, its successful existence and resilient evolution serve to boost self-pride, give prominence to national identity, and authenticate regional prestige in our collective Caribbean aesthetic, she said.