Amerindians must be empowered to be self-sufficient and not to rely on handouts from the government and other agencies, the PNCR said in a message for Amerindian Heritage Month.
Extending greetings and congratulations to Amerindians, the party said such empowerment and greater freedom must be rooted in the greater availability of educational opportunities and it called on the government to provide more hinterland scholarships and to commit to such a decision in the shortest possible time.
The PNCR said it was convinced that programmes must be put in place to reduce the levels of poverty within the Amerindian community, which the World Bank has noted is the highest in Guyana. “It is also a source of concern to the PNCR that human trafficking remains a serious problem for the Amerindian community and it therefore calls on the Jagdeo Administration to take urgent measures to arrest and eventually end this nefarious practice,” the party said in a press release.
It added that it hoped the planned activities would allow all Guyanese the opportunity to understand the historical contributions of the Amerindians to the development of Guyana and to give prominence to the cultural attributes of this section of our society and showcase their talents.
It noted that there was much to learn from Amerindian expertise in various art forms, cuisine and herbal medicine.
