A children’s Mash Day Float parade will be on February 23, 2016 and will replace the traditional Mash Day float parade which has been shifted to May 27, 2016.
Minister Nicolette Henry, explained that the decision was made to make allowance for greater participation from students from senior secondary schools.
She said, “Given that the senior secondary school students are scheduled to sit the CSEC during the May month period, they will not likely be available to participate much in the 50th Independence celebrations so we decided that on February 23, 2016, we will be having an all youth and children costume parade on the road.”
This, she said, will ensure that the young adults get to participate fully as the event will not clash with their examination period. In previous years the children’s parade is held several days before February 23, and features mostly nursery and primary schools with involvement from a few secondary schools.
Minister Henry said that the Ministry of Education has a responsibility to ensure that young people are engaged in meaning full activities.
“We thought that we would make maximum use of this opportunity to engage them during the Mashramani period so we are going to dedicate this period exclusively for their fun, for them to showcase their talents, for them to come out and have a grand time with as much support as possible from the adults in a positive way.”
While the Minister could not say if the Mashramani route will be the same as the adult road parade, she said that every effort will be made to encourage maximum participation from all schools.
Meanwhile the other activities listed as part of Mashramani 2016 include the national schools’ competition, the chutney competition, junior and senior calypso monarch competitions, a concert for the elderly, the steel pan competition, masquerade, and a street fair.
Taken from the Kaieteur News without permission