Amerindians would manage funds from forest they pledge – Independent review team

Nov 20, 2009 News

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Any funding mechanisms for revenues from forests which they may seek to be part of the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) would be managed by the indigenous people themselves.
This is highlighted in a report compiled by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). The Institute was contracted by the governments of Guyana and Norway to carry out a review of the consultation process of the LCDS.
The LCDS is Guyana’s position leading up to the United Nations Climate Change talks in Copenhagen. The LCDS argues that Guyana should be paid for keeping its forest standing and this would contribute to global efforts to prevent further global warming. The payment could come from rich countries under a mechanism that provides incentives for reducing deforestation and degradation (REDD).
Amerindian lands do not fall under the LCDS, and they have been told they can opt in or opt out. If they decide to pledge their forests, any funds that flow would be under the control of the indigenous peoples, the report stated.
The funds could be managed through mechanism(s) to be set up under the National Toshaos Council working in tandem with Village Councils with technical, legal and financial expertise provided as may be necessary.
According to the report, this point has been clearly articulated in the LCDS draft document and has been further emphasised in the stakeholder Consultation Framework and in sub national outreach meetings and other awareness sessions.
The Indigenous Peoples’ financial mechanisms proposed so far include: An Amerindian Development Fund for LCDS payments; Indigenous Peoples’ Low Carbon Development Bank; Indigenous Peoples LCDS Trust Fund.
Amerindians comprise 9.1 percent of Guyana’s population and currently own approximately 14% of the land with a majority of the communities holding Absolute Titles to their lands.
The Amerindian Act (2006) lays out a process for land titling. During the consultations, the situation of untitled communities and their rights was raised, with calls to ensure protection of their rights to their traditional lands and to enable fair benefits for these communities.
“It is anticipated therefore that the revised LCDS will take on board these appeals and address ways and means of settling such matters,” the report stated.
The LCDS draft says that: “The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs is continuing to work to expand land under Amerindian ownership, and extra resources provided through REDD and other forest payments will be used to accelerate this process.”
Recommendations were made for garnering of interim funds from donors through bilateral funds and other grants to support and expedite this measure.
The report noted that the current Guyana laws recognise and uphold the traditional land use practice of rotational farming and the call was therefore made for this not to be classified as either “deforestation”, “degradation” or derogatively referred to as “slash and burn”.
“Indigenous peoples called for this to be recognised as a sustainable activity and to be safeguarded as such within the LCDS REDD programme.”
Bridging the language divide
Meanwhile, the review team has suggested that audio-visual films explaining key facts about the LCDS could help Guyana’s Amerindian people understand better.
Bi lingual translators were catered for in the conceptual framework for the LCDS consultations and were on hand and utilised as required at the sub national sessions.
According to the report, the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs responded to calls from Amerindian leaders in the early consultations for documents to be produced in their own language. As a result, it was noted that a process of translation into five languages was commissioned, but this was only contemplated for the LCDS factsheet.
“The complexity of translating written texts should not be underestimated. These are oral languages and the majority of Amerindians are not familiar with the recently developed orthography and the written form of their languages,” the monitoring team suggested.
They therefore concluded that even if these are translated into written documents, they will not be easily read by most.
“Nonetheless, the recent experience of the Makushi Research Unit in North Rupununi has shown that translating sections of the Amerindian Act has allowed for a definite deepening and internalization of the nature and tenets of this law,” the report stated.
Given the challenges and time consuming effort involved, the monitoring team recommended that the translations be deferred for completion until the revised draft of the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) is produced, and to use the updated LCDS text for producing the translations of native languages.
They have also recommended that quality checks and peer approvals of these translations be done so as to ensure acceptability of same.
Alternatively, it was recommended that oral translations can also be made using the revised FAQ and that an optional format could be that of making an audio visual film (short documentary – Video or DVD) of bi lingual translators presenting key concepts and components of the LCDS.
This, the review team said would be an effective way of getting the message across in a direct and interactive way.
“Most villages have access to video machines, so showing a video, or playing an audio tape on a tape recorder would be quite suitable,” the review team stated.

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