Guyana has moved to expand its forest restoration strategy with the launch of a major bamboo pilot project aimed at rehabilitating degraded lands while creating sustainable economic opportunities in forest-dependent communities.
The Ministry of Natural Resources, through the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), on Wednesday commenced the initiative titled “Piloting Bamboo for Restoration & Sustainable Livelihoods in Guyana,” marking the country’s first large-scale push to integrate bamboo into its restoration framework.
The project builds on the National Forest Restoration Initiative (NFRI), a joint effort between the GFC and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), which since 2023 has been exploring alternative restoration pathways, including non-timber forest products and agroforestry systems alongside native species.
Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, has positioned bamboo as a strategic intervention within that framework, highlighting its potential to deliver both environmental recovery and economic returns.
“This flagship project continues to focus on actionable and tangible targets not only for bamboo trials but for building knowledge and capacity at all levels,” the ministry said in the release, noting that the initiative also “sets the stage for dynamic partnerships in a new industry based in nature and sustainability.”
At the operational level, the pilot began with a planting exercise in Coomacka, Region 10, where approximately 500 bamboo plants are being established on a mined-out bauxite site in the old Coomacka mines area, near the Maria Elizabeth/Three Friends community.
The species being trialled, Bambusa vulgaris var. vulgaris, is being introduced under the technical guidance of the International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation (INBAR), with the aim of assessing its viability for land restoration in post-mining landscapes.
The initiative is funded by the European Union under the Euroclima programme and is being implemented with technical support from Expertise France and INBAR.
Authorities said the Coomacka exercise represents the first phase of a broader national rollout, with similar planting activities expected to be replicated across other regions.
Mining communities in Region 10, including Maria Elizabeth/Three Friends, Coomacka, Old England/Siberien, Nottinghamshire, and Richmond Hill, have been actively engaged in shaping the project to ensure it aligns with local environmental and socio-economic realities.
Beyond ecological restoration, the project is designed to build capacity at the community level and lay the groundwork for a new, nature-based industry centred on bamboo production and value-added products.
