AN initiative worth $600 million (US$3 million) has been launched to provide support to residents and leaders of Amerindian villages. This initiative, facilitated by the National Toshaos Council (NTC), aims to develop and implement effective, sustainable plans aligned with national development priorities and global climate goals.

The multi-year project was initiated in February at the NTC’s Secretariat Headquarters, with the presence of NTC Chairman Toshao Derrick John, Ambassador Odd-Magne Ruud of the Kingdom of Norway to Guyana, and Permanent Secretary Ryan Toolsiram of the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs.

By prioritising robust environmental management, enhancing climate resilience, and fostering sustainable livelihoods, this project will empower the NTC to provide villages with technical support for the formulation of their 10-year Village Sustainability Plans (VSPs).

Through training programmes and seminars, the knowledge and skills of village leaders, community members, and NTC staff on pertinent themes would be strengthened. Furthermore, it will promote engagement, including field visits a the NTC level, between villages, pertinent government departments, non-governmental organisations, educational institutions, and other parties.

Moreover, a framework will be established to monitor, evaluate, and improve the implementation of VSPs through educational programmes and information sharing. The project holds great importance as it aims to enhance the institutional capacity of both the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs and the NTC in order to facilitate effective planning, execution, and oversight of VSPs.
Villages are urged to establish Village Savings and Loan Programmes through a participatory and self-governing approach in order to access and allocate these funds, as well as select initiatives aimed at enhancing village livelihoods.

In an interview with Melina Pollard, the Toshao from Rivers View, she explained that her village was the most far-flung village in region 10, Upper Demerara-Berbice.

According to her, “this project is going to really benefit the villages that would need support in preparing their village plans. The village plan is supposed to be for 10 years, and villages will receive support to build on the work they started last year in completing their annual plans and to scale that up to 10-year plans. So, this project is going to directly benefit those villages, so that they can have a longer term vision of what they want their village to be like and how they are going to achieve it.”

Toshao Pollard also added that she recognises the strong leadership of President Ali and Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, for ensuring that the ‘First Peoples’ benefit financially. “I want to also say that on behalf of all the Toshaos, we are grateful to President Irfaan Ali and Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo for all that they are doing for our people. These opportunities are not for one person or village; they are for all the Amerindian villages, all of us are benefitting, and we recognise this tremendous effort and leadership that have gone into making this programme such a success.”
“For me personally, it is going to assist my village also, although I have been around and helping the other villages with their plans, we only did a one-year plan. We were able to complete it in just one year, even though we had the information for ten years. This is something that we are working on too, with the people. We try to put our ideas together so that we can achieve a vision of what you hope your village will look like in the future,” Toshao Pollard explained.

Senior Director, Pradeepa Bholanath, of the Ministry of Natural Resources, who has been guiding the project since its inception, stated, in a media interview that “We look forward to the successful implementation of this project.  Government has strongly supported building capabilities at the village level and at the NTC.  This project will help to boost efforts in planning, project implementation and programme monitoring at the village level, at the national level through the NTC.”

She asserted that “this monumental project… will help us to take village planning forward in a way that will accelerate village capabilities to advance sustainable livelihoods and bring direct benefits to people.”

While the decisions about what initiatives to take on in their communities ultimately rest with the villagers, Pradeepa Bholanath said, “the way that funds are going to be invested would be determined by a village, expressed by a village, decided by villages in keeping with the Amerindian Act, and then implemented and monitored by villages themselves. This reflects true village leadership in development of plans and village ownership in the execution of projects. ”

The establishment of a bilateral partnership with the Kingdom of Norway facilitated the provision of funding for the initial stage of the LCDS, leading to the establishment of the Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund (GRIF). The United Nations system, commonly referred to as REDD+, enables nations with substantial forest coverage to receive compensation for the climate-related advantages provided by their forests.

The funding acquired through the agreement with Norway has enabled indigenous groups to develop plans for the village with assistance.

The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to Guyana, Odd-Magne Ruud, said, “For Norway, a top priority in this new phase of Guyana’s REDD+ journey is securing a transparent and effective project implementation of ongoing projects funded by the Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund, the GRIF. That includes delivering for indigenous peoples and recognising their crucial role in forest management.”

The funds generated from the sale of the carbon stored in the forests will be allocated to finance the second phase of the Low Carbon Development Strategy.

The estimated amount of carbon in those trees is over 19 gigatons. It is crucial to keep the trees standing because if they were to be cut down, the carbon would be released into the atmosphere, exacerbating the climate crisis since gases like carbon dioxide are what are raising global temperatures and causing extreme weather events like destructive floods and wildfires.

As per the government’s statement, a portion of 15% of the revenue generated from the sale of carbon credits will be allocated towards supporting indigenous communities via the village plan. The total amount allocated to Amerindian villages for the year 2023 equates to $4.7 billion. The Chair of the National Toshaos Council, Derrick John, attaches great importance to this financing.

Derrick John related that “this money means a lot for helping to develop plans, and then putting plans into action, and through this, building the capabilities of the NTC.  We can see ideas transformed into reality.”

(This is part of a weekly series on LCDS.) The author can be contacted at cparkinson0206@gmail.com