RESIDENTS of the tiny Arawak community of Santa Mission, a little haven nestling on the Kamuni River in Region Three, (E/bo Islands/West Demerara), are complaining about a host of problems, the most pressing of which is deterioration of lumbering/logging activities, their principal source of income; and lack of adequate transportation facilities.When this publication visited the village, residents apprised this reporter of the above concerns, and added that the lack of cooperation from villagers is hindering community development.

Mere months ago, the Private Sector Commission (PSC) had complained of being faced with a drop in consumer spending and delays/suspensions in projects because of non-payment.

Foreign and local business interests have also put a hold on investments, but Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin, is reported as saying the situation exists because people were awaiting the outcome of the May 11 elections in order to see the direction of the new Government and what direction it had determined to take with the budget.

The country is presumably facing an economic slowdown. Aside from the aforementioned reservations promulgated by the PSC, an online poll conducted by one section of the media indicated that most Guyanese are of the opinion that the escalating crime rate has contributed significantly to this alleged economic slowdown.

Though there are rarely any reported cases of crime in the Arawak community of Santa Mission, the issue of lack of investors is important when it comes to logging. And this was according to Andrew Ashby, a man who has spent his entire life as a logger in the Santa Mission village.

“We getting a hard time fuh sell we wood and survive in a place like this. We don’t have enough buyers. Right now we have only two buyers, and logging has been working out very bad for all of us (loggers) here,” the dissatisfied resident confessed.

“This is the first time that the community is faced with a massive decline in the logging business,” said Ashby. He added, “Now you gotta beg fuh business, because we gotta get fuel, food, and everything is expensive.”

‘Samuels’, a relatively young man and nephew of village Toshao Aubrey Samuels, also expressed his concerns about the village.
“I’m living here all my life, and it is not too good, because the community is not really developing. Cooperation from the people is not good, and without that cooperation, we (villagers) can’t get anywhere,” he pointed out.

Although the community has been transformed into a tourist destination by the renowned multi-billion-dollar Roraima Group of Companies, Samuels said, the state of the community at present is not being upkept, and for this reason, it discourages tourists from visiting.

Population of the village stands at 400, and the buying power is still there, the community’s first shopkeeper, “Jones” said.
Just five minutes into the village, there is the wooden shop embedded in the lower flat of Jones’s two storey house.
“I used to be the only shopkeeper here, but now there’s competition; but the buying power is still here. I travel to Georgetown once a week to stock some goods and groceries and confectionery, but sometimes the transportation is not always reliable here,” Jones bemoaned.

Another businessman, Edward Williams, expressed concern at the steady depletion of the village’s population, as persons are forced to move away from the village because of their children’s schooling. The population, he said, was originally about 800, but has dropped to half that amount.
The community has only one primary school, the Santa Mission Primary, which the Roraima Group of Companies has adopted since its establishment in 1995. It is this factor which has led to the upsurge in migration from the Santa Mission community to Georgetown, as parents moved along with their children to ensure completion of their secondary and tertiary education.

The community has a fairly good water and electricity (solar-power) supply, and one health centre, staffed by one health care worker.

President David Granger recently introduced the National Toshaos Council (NTC) and proposed a “10-point plan of action” for development of the hinterland. That plan contains Government’s commitment to closer integration in development of the hinterland and indigenous communities with communities on Guyana’s coast.

Government is expected to launch a Hinterland Employment and Youth Service (HEYS) scheme come September. It will be aimed at providing sustainable jobs, and providing youths with various skills to prepare themselves for the world of work.

Residents of the Santa Mission community are anticipating the implementation of Government’s promises, so as to aid in the development of their reservation.

By Shivanie Sugrim