THE Ministry of Social Protection Gender Affairs Bureau under the patronage of First Lady, Sandra Granger this evening will host a grand ‘I am Woman’ cultural programme in observance of International Women’s Day.

The event, which will be held at Parc Rayne, will see the feature address coming from the First Lady, with remarks from Minister of Social Protection Amna Ally, as well as from the Canadian High Commissioner.
The production of the cultural programme which will utilise an all-female cast follows a script produced by actress and Press Officer for President David Granger–Lloyda Garrett–and aims to celebrate the varying roles that women play throughout their lives and in society.

Garrett has been involved in the local film/ play production industry from a tender age and later began writing her own productions and being actively involved in their planning and coordination stage.

Speaking on the driving force behind the production, she said: “If you look throughout our history, women have played significant roles in every aspect of society. They haven’t only been homemakers, even though that’s not a bad thing, they’ve been everything under the sun.” “So, we want to show that a woman is just like a man with all those aspects of her personality and abilities and that she can really continue to play her part in Guyanese society.”

The 20-minute production is being described as a dance and spoken-word ensemble and will feature the National Dance Company, the Pakuri Dancers, the Dance School, the WIST (Worship In Spirit & Truth) Dance Ministry and a choral speaking group.

Performances will also come from gospel artiste, Cherlyn Maloney; former Miss Guyana World 2016, Nuriyyih Gerrard; 2018 Calypso Monarch, Onikha Joseph and others. “It doesn’t matter what religion, ethnicity, whether she’s from a rural community or she’s from the city, every single woman has a role to play in the development of our society,” said Garrett who promised that the programme would be one of enlightenment and excitement.
The entire event is being organised by Senior Gender Affairs Officer in the Ministry of Social Protection, Hymawattie Lagan; Senior Gender Affairs Officer, Ministry of Social Protection, Diego Alphonso and Director of Social Services, Wentworth Tanner. This evening also the Directory of Women’s Organisations in Guyana will be launched.