Indigenous groups will not support this undertaking

Jul 20, 2017 Letters

Dear Editor,
This letter has been sent to Mr. Clayton Hall FCPF Project Co-coordinator. We ask for publication in your newspaper. That the FCPF seems to be gaining momentum is good and I again commend you and your secretariat for that. Having said that I noted that advertisements were placed in the media for Consultants for Institutional Strengthening of the NTC and Indigenous NGO’s of Guyana.
Sir as you would recall I had raised the issue of support to the NTC and the NGO’s at previous meetings in the initial stage of the FCPF and mind you I was integrally involved in getting the FCPF program formulated and approved for Guyana. The NTC and more so the NGO’s at least TAAMOG the understanding was clear that direct support would come to the organization. US$150,000 was earmarked for the NTC and US$ 150,000 for the four NGO’s henceforth TAAMOG was expected no less than US$ 35 to 40,000 in direct support. I have been on record to make this point to the secretariat that the organizations need direct support and not consultant based support. This was the trust of the FCPF program document.
More so you would recall at the April 2017 meeting at the Regency Hotel a number of attendees expressed strongly that support should be provided directly to the beneficiaries rather than hiring consultants to do capacity building and reports. I recall this point being made by Mr. Thom of Kwakwani, Mr. Lincoln Lewis of the TUC and Ms. Karen De Souza. It was noted that the program should not waste resources in hiring a bunch of consultants just to do capacity building and a report. You indicated that this was certainly not the case and the project is a very people oriented project.
Low and behold the ads are for consultants for two long years (24 months) just to do the said capacity building/institutional strengthening activities as outlined in the advert. TAAMOG and many other indigenous leaders find this very worrying and troublesome and needless to say a waste of project resources. As per my previous letter TAAMOG and other indigenous groups will not support such an undertaking and we urged that this consultancy be scrapped and a task force to setup to include a wide cross section of civil society actors such as Mr. Thom, Mr. Lewis and Ms. De Souza that will help identify priority areas for the funding and chart the best approach for use of the funds. Guyana has in house capacity and the indigenous groups are aware of the issues but need tangible resources to make an impact.
The current approach being adopted by the secretariat is a quick fix and will leave no lasting impacts and I am afraid will not work for the Amerindian peoples of Guyana. I would also like to know the IDB’s input into this activity and the IDB having being part of the drafting of the FCPF document with the World Bank is fully aware that the expectation of the program was direct support to beneficiaries. I therefore find it strange that the IDB would give its no objection and change course without consulting the indigenous groups on what form of support is best suited.
I do look forward for the project’s Terms of Reference (TOR) to be adjusted and until such time I would again plea with the Tender Board not to proceed with this particular consultancy any further. This letter has been copied to; Ms. S. Mckonen- IDB Country Representative, PS, Ministry of Natural Resources, Chairman, National Tender Board, Media Houses, IDB and FCPF Secretariat, Washington DC,
Peter Persaud.
President, TAAMOG

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