THE Dutch in the 18th Century settled there and gave it the name Wakenaam which means “waiting for a name”.  However through community collaboration there have been advancements towards development and Wakenaam is stepping up to the task of making a name for itself. Community representative, Mr. Mustaq Mohamed, in an interview with the Guyana Chronicle, said community participation has proven to be an essential for development and success.
Wakenaam is an island of about 17.5 square miles at the mouth of the Essequibo River, Region Three (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara). Wakenaam’s economy is based on agriculture. Farming is the main occupation on this island. Farmers grow Rice, Coconut and various vegetables and roots. This is mainly sold off island.
Wakenaam has multiple villages which include Maria’s Pleasure, Good Success, Sans Souci, Melville, Belle Plaine, Sarah, Zeelandia, Friendship, Bank Hall, Meerzorg, Caledonia, Free and Easy, Arthurville, Palmyra, Maria Johanna, Domburg, Fredericksburg, Noitgedacht, Rush Brook and Ridge.
Mohamed said together these communities saw a successful ‘Wakenaam Nite 2010’.
He noted that the proceeds from the activity will go towards fencing the Community Centre Ground, at Good Success, where a $1M pavilion was built from the proceeds of a previous Wakenaam Nite exposition.
The funds will also be used to assist with medical outreaches, which are done twice per year in collaboration with the Ministry of Health.
“The last outreach was a two-day activity and over 500 people were seen. Representatives from the US Embassy were here to assist also,” he said.
Needs
According to the community representative the island, which presently has a Medex, is in need of a doctor and a medical laboratory.
He added that another primary area that needs to be addressed is that of employment opportunities that are available to the youths on the Island.
“After school many of the young people go to Georgetown and they find jobs and end up settling there,” Mohamed said.
He pointed out that the agriculture sector has opportunities for investment and by extension, the creation of employment on the island.
Traditionally the agricultural activities include rice farming, cattle rearing and production of cash crops and provisions, which are sold at Parika.
“We grow coconuts here and we can export thousands of coconuts, we just need to secure the markets and work on packaging and the infrastructure to make this possible,” the Community Representative said.
He added that the production of by-products from coconuts can be explored.
“We need help to get these things going…there are new areas that can be developed to help Wakenaam develop,” Mohamed said.
Apart from agriculture, he cited tourism as another avenue that can be exploited.
“We have the Bed and Breakfast set-up but we need a hotel…it would be a boost for people on the island and encourage more people to want to visit,” Mohamed said.
The community representative added that the airstrip that is presently under construction would be another plus for boosting domestic tourism.
Mohamed maintained that more developmental strides will improve opportunities for the younger people, particularly in the area of employment, and enhance quality of life in Wakenaam.
He stated that the support from the Diaspora is also very encouraging. While Wakenaam has needs, Mohamed maintained that some progress, through public and private support, has been made towards development.
“We have a shipping business being run from here, the Island Trading Shipping, which does trading between countries and does some export,” he said.
Mohamed noted that several persons have gained employment with the new company.
Providing a base to seek employment in Wakenaam are six nursery schools, six primary schools and the Essequibo Islands Secondary School.
“The secondary school is a new school and now the children have safe and easier access to the school, compared to the old one,” Mohamed said.
On the issue of security, Mohamed said there is a Community Policing Group which assists the Guyana Police Force and maintains patrols regularly during the week.
Mohamed said: “There is a policing group in each village and they are a good backup. They do a good job.”
When asked about the crime levels, he noted that apart from the petty thefts the island does not see much criminal activity. In the event that such an incident occurs it is most often perpetrated by an outsider.
“Here we live like a family. People in Wakenaam appreciate living here,” he posited.

The spirit of family he said extends to other areas, such as sports, more particularly flood light cricket.
“The last game we had we had teams from the counties come to play here…the people are starved for entertainment so we do what we can, like with Wakenaam Nite,” Mohamed said.
He stated that apart from the Wakenaam Community Centre Ground there are also six other ground that are in fairly good condition and are used for recreation.
Mohamed made an appeal for assistance from the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports to assist Wakenaam with a supply of sporting gears, which he said will keep the youths gainfully occupied.
Aside from sports, he said there are at least two dance troupes, which involve young girls and children.
“We push sports and groups because we want to engage the younger people,” Mohamed said.
He observed that the teenagers on the island are vulnerable to negative influences and he said the biggest problem in Wakenaam is drug use.
“The time change and children more easily influenced now. The children now have a different understanding and drug use is a big problem…we are pushing to do more because we want to have the children do other things and not be open to drugs,” he explained.
Additionally, Mohamed said remedial classes are expected to begin in another two to three weeks to once more engage youth.
“The next step is to get the Ministry of Education to work with us…the teachers working with is are volunteers who want all the young people to be abl
e to at least read and write,” he said.
The Community Representative addressed the issue of drinking and said it is only a weekend pastime for the residents of Wakenaam.
He maintained too that the pastime does not pose a problem in the domestic arena, in terms of abuse.
“It is a weekend thing after a hard week’s work,” he said.
In general, Mohamed contended that Wakenaam’s situation was one of ‘a cup half full’.
He said there has been progress made on the strength of community collaboration, but observed that with support Wakenaam can do more, can succeed on placing itself more prominently on the map – succeed in making a name for itself.
Vanessa Narine photos