SINCE Dr. Cheddi Jagan decreed September to be Amerindian Heritage Month in 1995 there has been projected

into the national and psychological psyche, that Amerindians are no longer going to be a marginalised people subsisting on the crumbs of developmental initiatives within the national construct, but will be fully integrated into the holistic national programme for development by the PPP/C Administration; and one of the basic components of this new paradigm is the Amerindian Act.
The Amerindian Act, 2005 provides for, inter alia: 1) Grants to communal land.
Unlike the old Act, the new Act includes a process for the granting of land. For instance, a community can apply for land once they can prove that they have been living there for at least 25 years and the minister must commence an investigation and make a decision within 6 months.
2) Leases: The minister is not required to approve leasing of titled Amerindian land, as opposed to the 1st Act where the minister is required to approve it. In the new Act, the communities are only required to seek the advice of the minister.
3) Intellectual Property Rights: With respect to the use of scientific research, the researcher will, among other things, have to submit to the Village Council a copy of any publication containing material derived from the research.
4)  Environmental Protection: The Amerindian Act supports the need for the communities to use their natural resources in a way that lends support to the concept of sustainability: Impact Assessments will have to be completed in accordance with the Environmental Protection Act.
5) Mining and Forestry: Amerindians will have a legal right to traditional mining with the consent of the Village Council and they must comply with the relevant legislation. With regard to forestry, the Village Council plays an integral role in determining who is allowed to use their land and on what terms.
6) Governance: The Village Council is empowered to establish rules for their communities and set fines within the legal confines of the law. Notably, the money received due to the non- adherence of the rules, goes into the Village Council’s account, not the government’s.
7)  Consultations: More than half of the recommendations are reflected in the Act. These inclusions were as a result of recommendations from the communities and other stakeholders. The process lasted two years and is an unprecedented one in this part of the hemisphere.
The Amerindians of Guyana are given equal status within the landscape of Guyanese citizenhood, while yet being encouraged to sustain their cultural and traditional norms, which far surpasses the treatment meted out to indigenous peoples of even first-world countries. The Amerindian Act is merely one component of the holistic approach successive PPP/C governments have taken to enhance economic growth and social development in Amerindian communities.