Linden Town Week (LTW) 2018 activities were officially launched in the mining town on Saturday with a simple ceremony hosted on the Linden-Georgetown mini-bus park.
The annual event, slated for April 22 to May 1, 2018, would be executed under the watchful eyes of the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC). In delivering the feature remarks at the launching ceremony, Deputy Linden Mayor Waneka Arindell asked that the pride of the town be restored, and actions towards it be improved with the hopes of raising achievement for the economy.
Deputy Mayor Waneka Arindell (right) and Acting Town Clerk Orleena Obermuller unveil the LTW 2018 Theme in the presence of other officials
“Our sincere objective as a Council is to revamp and elevate our town that was once known as the ‘bread basket of Guyana’. We intend to reinvent and reintroduce this occasion for what it is worth, while we provide exciting activities to engage every person- be it our locals or our visitors. We have identified our town as the ‘entertainment capital for Guyana.”
She added that the event is being hosted under the theme, ‘Celebrating culture, talent, creativity in a clean, green 2018’.
Project Coordinator for next year’s event, Devin Sears, said the Council is aiming to achieve the best executed activity. He promised the return of the LTW pageant, which was absent off the calendar for a few years.
Sears said the LTW Secretariat, which was established a few weeks ago, will be working solely towards inclusiveness. “We want to ensure that we bring back economic stability…This year (2018) will set the foundation of what is to come…”, he noted. Sears further outlined challenges which may have prevented the event from becoming an international highlight, including the town’s inability to accommodate the influx of visitors during that time. Based on studies conducted, Sears said, the town can accommodate only about 1.2 per cent of its visitors to the event. As such, he said, the bed and breakfast concept will be reintroduced. Additionally, he said the Guyana Tourism Authority would also be offering guidance and training leading up to LTW 2018.
According to Sears, next year’s event will focus on enhanced standardised vending infrastructure and zoning, which is likely to be colour- coded. He added that the Council is negotiating to have LTW magazines and international advertising. Sears said the concept of a ‘Linden Awards’ will also be introduced.
Also of particular focus will be sports, senior citizens’ luncheon, essay writing, tours, spelling bees and the youth village, he explained.
Sears explained that the Council is uninterested in executing concept parties or any major for- profit events, but rather will be executing community-based and non- profit events.
