After 13 years of wait Kariako receives land title document

Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock on Friday handed over the land title document for the community of Kariako to Toshao Limbert Henry in the presence of Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine and Ministerial Advisor, Mervyn Williams.

Also present was Secretary Wayne Wilson, and Treasurer of Kariako Village Council, Claude Alleyne.

At the handing over ceremony held at the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, community leaders were urged to ensure efficient management of the land.

Kariako is a small Indigenous community in Region One and has a population of over 600 people, with its main economic activities being mining and small-scale farming. The community has been awaiting its certificate of title since 2004.

Toshao Henry said the title document will allow the community to push its development forward.

Under the Guyana REDD + Investment Fund (GRIF), Government in 2013 signed a US$10.7M document for the implementation of the Land Titling and Demarcation project.

The project came to an end in 2016; however the Ministry requested an extension in the 2017 budget. This resulted in $165 M earmarked for the advancing of the remaining identified areas for land titling.

In 2016, almost 1,000 square kilometres of land was demarcated in Regions One, Seven, and Eight.

This project, which is being spearheaded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), seeks to protect Indigenous rights and create livelihood opportunities for residents.