– to stress children’s rights through art
THE Parliament of Guyana, in collaboration with UNICEF and the University of Guyana, on Thursday, launched a Children’s Art Competition and Exhibition at the Parliament Office.The objective of the competition is to bring visibility to child rights in Parliament with a focus on governance and child rights.

Country representative of UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) Ms. Marianne Flach said how pleased she was that the Parliament of Guyana was providing such an excellent platform for the expression of children’s rights through art.
Ms. Flach added that “we recognise that much work has been done by Government and civil society, the media and the children themselves, however, we also recognise that if we work together we can achieve even greater results for the children of Guyana.”
She noted that art is a powerful means of expression, and it is especially so for children, who may sometimes not have the right words to express what they are thinking and feeling. She said too that art is also an excellent medium for inspiring ideas, creativity and spreading change. This activity, therefore, is an excellent way of encouraging children to express themselves and advocate for positive changes in their society, she added.
Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr. Raphael Trotman expressed similar sentiments, noting his delight in staging such an event. The Speaker added that at the end of the exercise, efforts will be made to have some of the art pieces displayed in Parliament Building as part of the recognition for the children of this land.
Representative of the University of Guyana School of Education and Humanities, Mr. Philbert Gajadhar, in his remarks at the launching noted the importance and significance of art in a child’s life. “Art is a dynamic and unifying activity, with great potential for the education and development of our children,” he said.
The competition is not only designed to produce “nice art works”, but rather it is aimed at an understanding of how cognitive development relates to creative and artistic expression as well as to understand and appreciate what children are communicating through their art and to provide answers to all their concerns.
The competition seeks to create opportunities for children throughout the 10 administrative regions of Guyana, including those who are in vulnerable settings, to develop self-expressions, through their interpretation of ‘Child Rights and Governance’.
Expressions of art works will be done through drawing, painting, collage, assemblage, and mix-media.
The competition is open to children between the ages of four to eighteen (4-18) with differing themes according to age category. Prizes will be awarded to the top three art forms from each category after being judged by artists from the University of Guyana, Castellani House and Burrowes School of Art.
Further details on the competition will be channelled through the media and public advertisements.
By Ravin Singh