T&T Newsday: Cadiz: Ministry to encourage local content in mas

Cadiz: Ministry to encourage local content in mas

By Verdel Bishop Monday, July 23 2012

A model shows off a costume from mas band Tribe 2013 presentation, Butterflies Beast Bacchanal at the Queen's Park Savannah on Saturday night. …

Tourism Minister Stephen Cadiz said Tribe mas band has revolutionised the Carnival experience in TT with its use of electronic and online registration. Cadiz noted that through such innovations, festival tourism can be successfully marketed locally and will be increasingly attractive for export to other parts of the world.

Speaking at the band’s launch, Tribe’s 2013 14-section presentation, Butterflies Beasts Bacchanal, at the Queen’s Park Savannah on Saturday night, he said the Ministry was committed to collaboration with mas makers and policy makers to ensure that Carnival not only grows and improves but remains sustainable.

“We will continue to encourage local content and materials in presentations as well as improve the current framework regarding foreign content and imports,” he said.

“By our active involvement in better assisting bands like Tribe in their outreach and operations, the Ministry of Tourism can catalyse the refinement of our already wildly popular Carnival product and create a model destined for universal success.”

Meanwhile, 2011 Project Runway season nine winner, and designer of Tribe’s Acara Acraea section, Anya Ayoung Chee, said she has been invited back to the show by producers of Project Runway season ten. Not as a competitor on the show, Ayoung Chee said she will have an opportunity to promote Caribbean fashion and TT.

She also said her winning collection from Project Runway, “Tobago Love”, continues to attract international attention. She said one of her designs which was shown on the newest Project Runway, continues along the “Tobago Love” theme.

She also spoke of a natural connection between mas and fashion with potential between the two industries to collaborate with each other. “We must recognise that there is much potential between the two industries to collaborate with each other. While the local fashion industry has struggled over the last decade to produce in mass quantities for local and overseas markets we are able to do so annually for Carnival,” Ayoung Chee said.

She said her aim was to work with government and the private sector to stimulate a viable local manufacturing facility where we can have “made in TT” on all fashion garments, costumes and accessories.

Tribe bandleader Dean Ackin Tribe also announced that Tribe is the new Miss Universe franchise holder for Trinidad and Tobago. The mas band has taken the reigns from previous franchise holder, Ian Lee, and will select and prepare this country’s delegate for the 2012 Miss Universe pageant in December at a time and place to be announced by the Miss Universe organisation at the end of July.

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