Dear Editor,
As Amerindian leaders, it is important to speak up, when our voices as Indigenous peoples who live in our forests, are taken over by those who profess to speak for us. I read in the Letter to the Editor section in the Stabroek News edition of 8th December, 2022, a letter writer who clearly has a main motive, to stop Indigenous Communities from benefiting from the forest that they have protected for centuries. Amerindian communities are hopeful of what the vision outlined in the country’s Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030 can bring for Amerindian people across Guyana, to transform lives and livelihoods at the village level.
At the recently concluded consultations on Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030, the main recommendation on benefits sharing that came back from stakeholders was that a national level engagement (the marketing of all carbon assets by Government) should be used in the carbon market rather than a sub national or project level. This is the only way that meaningful financing at scale would flow to forest villages and communities in Guyana. Amerindian communities have long asked for Government to provide the support for expanding the value of forests to villages. The LCDS 2030 has done this.
Another main area which was supported by villages is for a dedicated total of 15 percent of all revenues earned from the sale of forest carbon, a level even greater than the forest which are titled to villages, go to Amerindian villages for resourcing of Village Plans which contain activities that villages identify. Needless to say, this is widely supported by Amerindians villages. The results of the 7 month nationwide consultation, and as expressed in the Summary of Consultation Report on the LCDS Website Summary of Feedback – LCDS, shows broad consensus – this consensus involves that Government bear all cost for entry into the programme, and benefits flow to Amerindian community, even exceeding the extent of forest titled to Amerindian Communities.
At the meeting of all village leaders in July 2022 (the National Toshaos’ Council Conference), this support for jurisdictional scale engagement on carbon markets and benefits sharing mechanism of 15% of all revenues, with no deduction of costs, to go the Amerindian communities, was unanimously agreed to. A resolution was passed by this national representative body of Amerindian Leaders, the National Toshaos’ Council to express this agreement. The recent contract signed by the Government for the sale of carbon credits represents to villages, this promise becoming a reality.
Indigenous leaders have resolved, at their meeting in July 2022 that the approach of national scale engagement in the carbon market is the agreed approach. Indigenous leaders further support the proposed benefits sharing mechanism which was consulted on for over 7 months as part of the LCDS 2030 stakeholder process, and endorsed by indigenous leaders at this national meeting in July 2022. The claim that there is no legal basis when there is expressed agreement by Amerindian villages is disingenuous and aims at preventing opportunities available to indigenous peoples to be taken advantage of.
It is clear that such attempts seek to prevent Amerindian villages from accessing the resources that is available, by creating a false perception on what Indigenous leaders have actually themselves spoken up on, support to the vision and approach of the LCDS 2030 and support to receiving resources for development. We, the members of the National Toshaos Council, hereby state our satisfaction with the consultation process and fully support the carbon sales agreement the first of its kind in the world.
Sincerely,
Derrick John
