President receives souvenir CARIFESTA stamps, coin

President Bharrat Jagdeo receiving the souvenir coin from Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Gobind Ganga
President Jagdeo being presented with the collection of CARIFESTA X stamps by GPOC Chairman, Juan Edghill	CARIFESTA X MEMENTO COIN

In order to ensure that the Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) X is long-remembered and remains an important part of Guyana’s and the Caribbean’s history, the Guyana Post Office Corporation (GPOC) and the Central Bank of Guyana have produced memento stamps and coins in observance of the event and recently the first of these were presented to President Bharrat Jagdeo at the Office of the President.

Chairman of the GPOC, Bishop Juan Edghill, explained that the Post Office were seeking to revive the philatelic market in the country to aid in preserving the country’s history.

Meanwhile, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Gobind Ganga, presented the first of the special coins minted for the event, which was produced in the denomination of $2,000.

Ganga said the Bank was pleased to be associated with preserving Guyana’s history and the coin was expected to be unveiled shortly at the Bank.

The Central Bank has pointed out that the coin is made of cupro-nickel and was minted in limited quantity by North American Mint Incorporated. The reverse of the coin depicts the Carifesta logo designed by Keith Bernard, while the obverse depicts the National Coat of Arms of Guyana.

The coins were available for sale to the public from August, 21, 2008, at the Bank of Guyana at a price of $3,800.00 each (approx. US$20). (Guyana Consulate)