Amerindian Affairs Ministry achieved its mandate for 2007 -Minister Rodrigues

Amerindian Affairs Ministry achieved its mandate for 2007
-Minister Rodrigues
Guyana Chronicle, 30 December 2007
The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, during the year, has made
significant contributions to the development of Amerindians
countrywide.

Yesterday Minister of Amerindian Affairs Carolyn Rodrigues, told the
media that the Ministry has achieved its 2007 mandate through building
the capacity of Amerindian leaders and further developing their
communities.

Minister Rodrigues said that one of the most important achievements was
the National Toshaos’ Conference on October 22 to 26, under the theme
‘Building Capacity for Good Governance’ and hosted by the Ministry at
the Guyana International Conference Centre, Liliendaal.

She noted that the nomination of the three members to the Indigenous
People’s Commission (IPC) is a significant achievement for
Amerindians. The IPC will address all aspects of Amerindian
development.

“We are hoping that it will come into being in the near future. In fact
the Parliamentary Committee of Appointment is looking at it at the
moment and it will be completed in the near future”, Minister Rodrigues
said.

To further enhance the development of Amerindian communities, 20
Toshaos were unanimously elected to the National Toshaos’ Council (NTC)
by their fellow Toshaos.

The NTC will serve in various capacities to represent and ensure all
Amerindians communities are further developed.

The Council has already met once since its formation and has begun
working on its 2008 programme.

The Amerindian Affairs Minister said 111 Toshaos were sworn-in as
Justices of the Peace and Rural Constables, another success for the
Ministry. These Toshaos are mandated with the responsibility of
protecting the interest of Amerindians in the country and will give
support to the Council.

“We have also had the formulation of the draft rules at the meeting and
the Toshaos have started to look at the ones that are applicable to
their communities”, Minister Rodrigues noted.

The Ministry was also able to make significant progress in the issuance
of birth certificates for the year, a collaborative effort between the
Ministries of Amerindian Affairs and Home Affairs.

It was noted that this process has become much more important now since
house-to-house registration will be taking place shortly. However,
there are some persons who did not register in Regions One, Seven,
Eight and Nine. There will be another round of the registration
process in the communities by the Community Development Officers (CDOs)
so that persons can receive their birth certificates.

Minister Rodrigues noted that more than 13, 000 birth certificates were
issued for the past two to three years despite the challenges faced.