Latest update April 1st, 2025 5:37 PM
EU targets productivity in $51M Amerindian Villages’ project
The European Union (EU) is funding a $51M project that is geared towards strengthening Amerindian villages to become more productive.
According to the EU, on Thursday, Ambassador Robert Kopecký, Head of Delegation of the EU to Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname and the Dutch OCTs, and Melinda Janki, Executive Director of Justice Institute of Guyana, signed a grant contract to implement a project titled “Step by Step to Self-Sufficiency’’.
EU Ambassador, Robert Kopecky and Justice Institute’s Melinda Janki at the signing
The grant involves the support of a maximum of 179,731 Euros ($51.2M) and will be funded from the 2013 Non State Actors (NSA) country allocation for Guyana.
The organization will be charged with helping to empower Amerindian Village Councils to function more efficiently and effectively. This includes developing village rules and strengthening their capacity to become more productive and self-sufficient.
“Additionally, the action also foresees strengthening the participation of Amerindian communities in governmental consultation processes.”
The activities will be done via the provision of technical legal advice and support, technical legal drafting expertise and legal representation.
“Further, it is foreseen that the production of model village rules, a code of conduct for Amerindian Village Councils, model mining agreements and the production of policy papers and DVDs will be financed under the grant.”
According to Ambassador Kopecký, “The European Union recognises the integral role played by NGOs in the development of Guyana, and the non-state actors and Local Authorities thematic programme provides funding opportunities to support civil society projects in Guyana.”
The thematic programme, introduced in 2007, is a development policy instrument of the European Consensus on Development which recognises the key role of civil society in promoting development.
These include tackling poverty alleviation and the capacity building of civil society.
“With this in mind, the EU Delegation in Guyana has since 2008 launched regular calls for proposals under this thematic line, and to date has provided financial assistance to a total of 23 beneficiaries totalling approximately €6.4M ($1.8B).”
EU said that it is envisaged that the grant to the Justice Institute of Guyana will supplement the work already undertaken by other grant beneficiaries locally and the organisation will be working over the next 36 months towards the effective roll-out of the activities foreseen under the intervention.
The EU also disclosed that the Justice Institute is in partnership with the Equal Rights Trust, a UK registered think tank, to host a two-day judicial colloquium in Georgetown ending today.
The colloquium is funded via European Union assistance to the Equal Rights Trust and covers key developments and international best practice in the field of anti-discrimination law, with a particular focus on comparative jurisprudence from other jurisdictions, and is being supported by the Supreme Court of Guyana.
The colloquium is being attended by senior members of ERT’s global network of equality experts, including former Supreme Court judges from Canada and the UK, and a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice.
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