According to a Govern-ment Information Agency (GINA) press release
Guyana’s delegation which also comprised Liaison Officer to the Minister Norman Whittaker and Chair-person of the National Toshaos Council (NTC) Yvonne Pearson, was the only team headed by a minister. This, Sukhai noted, highlighted government’s commitment to Indigenous peoples.
The forum allowed discussions on relevant issues affecting indigenous peoples worldwide, the release said. Sukhai who attended the second week of the forum focused her address on Indigenous peoples and the forest, particularly on issues related to the ownership of land and resources and Free Prior and Informed Consent.
“The major role that sustainably managed tropical forests, inclusive of Guyana’s forests play in providing national, regional and international benefits, especially in terms of mitigation of and adaptation to the adverse effects of climate change at the global level, is receiving the well deserved attention of the international community, and Government is pleased that the Permanent Forum placed this issue on the agenda,” Sukhai said. The minister pointed out that forest resources should be used for the socio-economic development of Guyanese.
In her address, Sukhai also noted that government recognises the critical relationship between the promotion of sustainable human development and the sustainable exploitation of the country’s resources.
The minister also emphasised that the Indigenous population occupies and owns 13.9% of Guyana’s total land mass, including important forest resources. “Additionally, they have rights to ownership of land through legal titles and are the largest private land owners in Guyana,” she said.
GINA noted that legislation governing the rights of Amerindians to land ownership and exclusive rights to their forest and its resources are the Amerindian Act of 2006, Environmental Protec-tion Act of 1996 and the Forest Act of 2009. Amerindians are not limited to their forest since they access State forest through government’s policy to grant State Forest Permits to Amerindian communities. The minister also spoke about Guyana’s approach to the sustainable management of Guyana’s standing forests in the context of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation and Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy at the forum.
