New ATV to support Orealla’s logging project
Guyana, Monday, February 06, 2017
Orealla, located on the Corentyne River, Region Six, today, received a new ATV (All-Terrain Vehicle) from the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs. The vehicle will be used to support the community’s logging project.
During a simple handing over ceremony at the Hinterland Student Dormitory at Liliendaal, Toshao David Henry, said that the vehicle will provide significant assistance to the community, since they (the community) has to do geo-tagging and GPS reading in the logging areas.
Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock handing over the ATV to Toshao of Orealla, David Henry at the Hinterland Student Dormitory at Liliendaal
Toshao Henry explained that the community is mostly engaged in logging and small scale farming. He said that there are individual loggers who own their own equipment and are engaged in lumbering. However, all the overall project is managed by the Orealla Village Council.
“So this transportation will help us a great deal to boost out economic activities. It will also help us in farming also and also in health because there are some patients who cannot leave their homes to visit the health centre so it will be made available for the doctor to do home visits,” Toshao Henry said. He said that the Council will ensure that the vehicle is properly maintained and the residents benefit from it.
Meanwhile, Vice President and Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock, told the Village Council to make full use of the transportation to conduct their daily duties, as they seek to have better management control over logging activities in the community.
Minister Allicock encouraged the community to use the vehicle to generate funds for its maintenance so that in years to come the community can be able to purchase their own transportation.
Orealla or Orealla Mission, is one of two Indigenous communities located on the Corentyne Coast, Region Six and overlooks neighbouring Suriname. Its sister community is Siparuta. These communities are managed by one Council and together they have a population of over 2000 persons.
The communities are sustained through the collection of royalty for sand and logs, supported by traditional farming, fishing and hunting activities.
By: Synieka Thorne