Government is considering proposals for village grants from 125 Amerindian communities. President Bharrat Jagdeo had said that a total of $150M would be allocated to the communities and that larger communities would get more money at the Toshaos’ Conference held in October.
According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) press release Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues, said so far her ministry has received 40 proposals and it is checking the feasibility of the projects before releasing the money.
She said that in 2005, the communities were given the liberty to choose their projects, with the ministry’s permission, but many of the proposals were not sustainable. “This time we want to be careful in choosing the projects so that the communities can benefit,” she said.
According to the ministry’s Project Director, Ronald Cumberbatch, the grant is to assist the communities to develop their capacity to manage projects as well as to provide capital for feasible economic projects.
According to GINA, some Toshaos and residents said they took more time to draft their proposals because they wanted the money to be spent wisely for the benefit of the communities. Some of the communities intend to invest the money in a number of income-generating activities already ongoing in the regions. In Region Nine, at Fairview, villagers used the last grant to establish a shop and the money generated was used to purchase a minibus for the community.
