RESIDENTS of Agricola have joined hands to develop the community into a modern ‘green’ village where they can become socially and economically empowered.

“The goal is to create a sustainable and economically viable community,” Agricola Development Association (ADA) President, Timothy Blair, told the Guyana Chronicle.

“One of our goals is to make Agricola the first ‘green’ community in Georgetown, under the government’s ‘Green’ Agenda,” he said.

The ADA was formed in February with the intention of “changing the face of Agricola”, according to Blair. In so doing, the group aims to physically revamp the community and boost the skills of its residents.

So far, the group, along with the ‘A sure foundation’, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) of final year University of Guyana (UG) students, has begun the developmental works.

“In a ‘green’ community, you need certain facilities – you need proper water, you need proper electricity, you need certain facilities, you need eco-buildings and most importantly, you need the mindset of the people in the community to be changed to accommodate what a ‘green’ community stands for,” Blair opined.

And the process of creating the ‘green community’ is one which is supported by the Ministry of Communities, which has so far donated bins and tools to help with the community’s development.

There is a large empty lot that has become overgrown with vegetation, just next to the community’s ballfield. The first phase of making Agricola ‘green’ involves clearing this plot of land and cleaning-up the surrounding environment.

“We started with the clean-up because in order for you to have a ‘green’ community, you must first have a clean community. Then we decided that we’re going to make it a yearly campaign so that people could get it in their heads – called the ‘spanking and green community’,” Blair quipped.

In this space, a recreational park and a multi-purpose facility for members of the community will be built. Blair indicated that the group is working alongside the leaders of the constituency to facilitate and to potentially develop a community cultural centre as well.

This is part of the efforts being made to provide safe spaces, especially for youth, to develop their skills and talents in addition to having a place for their leisure time. At the ballfield, the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) will be looking to plant fruit trees there as well, to augment the efforts of crafting the safe space.

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

On the more social side of transforming Agricola, Blair explained that efforts are being made to create employment opportunities. The concept of the ‘green community’, he said, is not just about physical attributes, but about creating sustainable livelihoods.

“Critical to this is education,” the ADA president said.

In facilitating education and training opportunities, Blair shared that classes in entrepreneurship development and community leadership development are being offered to members of the community.

Initially, this education programme catered only for 12 persons who were tied directly to the ADA but the merits of exposing more persons in the community to this were seen.

“Doing that, gives other members of the community the knowledge that we are going to gather. Once they have that knowledge, these are the people we are going to put in charge to manage the little projects such as the clean-up campaign that we are doing around the community,” Timothy noted.

And the programmes covered include marketing, financial management, time management, community and leadership development, among others, which are all being offered to stimulate the growth of small enterprises in the community, in an attempt to make the community economically viable.

“We’re aiming to create jobs and starting companies,” Blair said, adding that ADA is seeking to also network with both local and international mentors so that residents could learn more practically about entrepreneurship.

The younger ones in the community are not left out of the mix either, according to Blair, who noted that the transformation must occur at all levels if it is to be sustainable.

It is envisioned that other groups like the football group, which is made up of youth primarily, and other established groups of young people, would engage with the ADA and the work being done.

“We are going to train them and see that they are changing their mindset too in thinking of Agricola as a ‘green’, clean [and] viable community,” Blair stressed.