The African Guyanese Forum

PRESIDENT David Granger will today deliver the keynote address at the Cuffy250’s fourth annual “State of African Guyanese” Forum. The President has each year performed this task at this event, which brings together hundreds of African Guyanese to discuss and deliberate on issues affecting that community. That he has seen it fit to address this gathering signals that the President attaches great significance to such deliberations. He has addressed similar gatherings of other ethnic groups before and during his tenure in office.Despite some having frowned on such ethnic meetings, these meetings have become a fixture in multi-ethnic societies such as ours, and are not in themselves bad; it is what they are used for that often leads to controversy. If they are used as platforms to sow ethnic discord, then they should be so condemned; but if they are fora for healthy discussion about the state of the group and the condition of Guyana as a whole, the country as a whole benefits. From all indications, this Cuffy250 Forum falls into the latter category.

As a diverse society, each group tends to have its own peculiar challenges, and in some regards, experiences social reality differently. This year’s Forum takes place on the 50th anniversary of Guyana’s independence, and as Cuffy250 has said, it is situating the discussions within the context of Guyana’s next 50 years as an independent nation. This is most laudable; it signals that the organizers see the destiny of African Guyanese as wrapped up with the larger national destiny.

The Forum, the theme for which is “African Guyanese Self-Realisation: Challenges for the next 50 years”, is set to focus on the state of the African Guyanese community. According to the leaders of the community, they are not satisfied with the condition of the community. As Cuffy250 said in its emancipation message, “Cuffy250 believes that, 178 years after formal emancipation, the African Guyanese community still confronts structural barriers to full emancipation. These barriers are manifested in the challenges faced by African Guyanese particularly in the socio-economic sphere.”

At last year’s Forum, the President challenged those present to focus on the restoration of the village economy as a pivotal step in the direction of African Guyanese empowerment. There has since been a lot of discussion about how to achieve that goal. In this regard, many have argued that the revival of agriculture and small businesses is pivotal to this endeavour. We note that these items are very much part of the agenda for today’s deliberations.

As most Guyanese know, the creation of villages as self-sustaining socio-economic and political spaces was one of the seminal developments in the period immediately following emancipation in 1838. The decline of villages in recent times is seen as a major causes of the current state of the African Guyanese community. The President’s observation last year is still relevant to the discussions this year.

The position of African Guyanese in the private sector has recently come under much scrutiny, especially since the President has declared that Government is not the medium for providing jobs, and instead urged Guyanese to look to creating jobs through entrepreneurship.

African Guyanese leaders and commentators have pointed to the structural challenges confronting that group’s participation in the private sector. As Cuffy250 observes, “While the community has made strides in the face of these challenges, the inability to compete in the private economic sector has served to blunt those successes.”

If African Guyanese are to overcome those barriers, it would take a massive effort on the part of policy makers, but, more importantly, by the community itself. One of our columnists, Dr. David Hinds, has called on Government to invest in improved infrastructure for the revival of agriculture in the villages. He also pointed to the need to make capital more accessible to those who are inclined in the direction of starting small business. In effect, he advocated for more proactive policy initiatives by the Government.
We wish to add that Government policy has to be accompanied by a change in the mindset of the community. We feel that African Guyanese have to overcome the mindset that they are not suited for entrepreneurship, and, in the process, recover the discipline needed for such endeavours. In this regard, this Forum could be a catalyst in that direction.

Cuffy250 seems to have recognized this fact in the following comment: “It is against this background that Cuffy250 brings together the African Guyanese community to begin a movement towards the revival of the spirit of self-realization that was so pivotal to the struggle against slavery and colonialism, and for the survival and advance of the community.”

Finally, we are especially heartened that one of the topics for discussion at the Forum is “African Guyanese and Social Cohesion.” In the final analysis, African Guyanese empowerment would be more durable and effective if it is tied to the larger national project. Linkages with other ethnic groups are therefore imperative.

We wish the Forum all success, and hope the outcomes would be to the benefit of African Guyanese and Guyanese in general.

David Hinds

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