Work of Toshaos’ Council hindered by lack of financing -Vice-Chairman

The ability of the National Toshaos’ Council (NTC) to properly carry out its mandate specifically in the interest of Amerindian land titling is being impeded by a lack of financing, according to Vice Chairman Lenox Shuman.

In a letter published in yesterday’s edition of the Stabroek News, Shuman explained that at the conclusion of the NTC Conference in August of 2015, it was decided that special interest would be given to specific areas which were deemed to be of utmost importance.

These included plans to establish an extension of a timeframe for the current Amerindian Land Titling (ALT) programme; a revision of the Amerindian Act of 2006, including the incorporation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; and advancing the rights of women and gender balance.

However, Shuman stated that because of the financial restrictions placed on the committee’s budget, works in those areas are stymied.

“Of these resolutions, to date the NTC has been impeded by finances to have movement in any direction and thus hampering the NTC’s ability to meet its mandate under the Amerindian Act, or even to grow,” he said.

Elaborating on this, Shuman stated that the body had prepared a proposed budget of $38 million, however, less than half of that sum was approved for the council,