“CULTURE is a unifying force, despite where you stand on the political divide, there is one thing that can bring us together and that is our culture; it is one thing we must cherish, enjoy and preserve, because it is the definition of all Guyanese.”These were the words of the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony, during his remarks at the Mashramani prize-giving ceremony on Tuesday Evening at the National Cultural Centre.

The minister disclosed that Mashramani is underestimated to some extent, but in reality, the period is one of the most creative in the season, as the country comes alive with all the extravagant festivities.
According to Minister Anthony, Mashramani is truly the people’s festival, as thousands come together along with the ministry and the Central Mash Committee to make the event a success.
“I am fascinated by the work that so many people do, and without your hard work it could not have been a success, because the committee along with the ministry just consists of a relatively small group of people who help to guide the process,” he said.
The uniqueness of Guyana is that we can all appreciate everyone’s culture and we’ve grown and are getting better as a society.
MOE’S ROLE
That apart, he highlighted the contributions of the Ministry of Education(MoE) over the years to making the festival of Mashramani a success.
Over the years, Minister Anthony said, the children’s Mash parade has grown, as manifested by more beautiful and bigger costumes, and there is also a possibility that the children’s parade is going to be bigger than the adults’ parade, Dr Anthony posited.
Minister Anthony reiterated that culture defines us as a people, therefore, it should be transmitted from generation to generation and the work that the MoE does during this period helps to sustain many of the things we call culture.
DEVELOPMENTS
Meanwhile, according to the minister, “This year there were visible improvements in the art [forms] of Steel Pan, Soca Music, Calypso and Chutney; although Calypso has its ups and downs, we still need more calypsonians, because it is one of the art forms we need to see grow and develop.
“Over 100 songs were done and we need to put them on CDs so that persons can have them after the festivities, so that we can help to market the festival and create merchandises,” said the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport(MCYS).

PATENT ON MASHRAMANI
As the marketing of the festival is a major factor, there will be new initiatives for Mashramani 2016, one of which includes the patenting of the word Mashramani.
“A number of companies advertise things pertaining to Mashramani and they don’t contribute to the festival in any way. Therefore, the pirating of the event [ambush marketing] must be dealt with, so that people who contribute could max out their dollars and get maximum benefits,” said Minister Anthony.
He explained that when the word Mashramani is patented, anyone who needs to use it will have to go through the MCYS, so in that way the festival will be self-sustaining.
EXCITING 2016
Dr Anthony continued: “For 2016, the celebrations must be extra special, as we will be celebrating [our] 46th Republic anniversary and also our 50th year as an independent country; therefore, the festivities will start when we do our Republic celebrations, as we are expecting a whole year of celebrations.”

In closing, Minister Anthony expressed his gratitude to all the supporters who made the festival a success and also extended congratulations to the winners who were presented with awards on Tuesday evening.
At the ceremony, the audience was given a chance to relive the Mash festivities through performances by the current Soca Monarch, Jumo Primo; Chutney King, Roger Hinds (young Bill Rogers); a creative dance presentation by the National Dance Company and also a performance from the Current Calypso King, King Perai.
Meanwhile, the winners in the various competitions were presented with trophies, cheques and hampers.
Prizes for the Steel Pan Competition were sponsored by Republic Bank, while those for the Carib Soca Monarch were sponsored by Ansa Mcal Trading Guyana. Sponsorship for prizes also came from newcomers Sterling Products, Holiday Snacks, and the MCYS.