Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo on Monday said the government’s development strategy for Amerindian communities must now move beyond its traditional emphasis on infrastructure and social services towards creating sustainable economic opportunities and employment within villages.
Addressing Toshaos at the opening session of the National Toshaos Council (NTC) Conference at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Jagdeo said that while investments in education, healthcare and infrastructure would continue, the next phase of development should focus on improving livelihoods.
“We now need to shift to other things that the residents want in these villages,” Jagdeo said. “The first thing is income generating activities so people can make money.”
He said the aim is to create opportunities that would allow young people and other residents to earn a living in their own communities rather than migrate to the coast for work.
“The young kids who live in your villages can start earning… right in the villages without having to leave because they have work there,” he said.
Jagdeo told the village leaders that discussions during the conference would centre on two priorities: income-generating activities and employment creation.
“I want us for the next few days to focus on income generating activities, how we can generate economic activities for the villages and, two, job creating activities,” he said, noting that development strategies would have to be tailored to the differing circumstances of individual communities.
He stressed that projects should be sustainable and market-driven rather than having multiple villages producing goods for which there is little demand.
“What we pursue in every village could be different than another village, but it must be sustainable,” he said.
According to Jagdeo, while government would continue improving schools, health facilities and other infrastructure, those investments alone would not address what he described as the biggest concern being raised by residents.
“We’re gonna continue fixing up the school building and the hospitals… but we can’t keep our focus only on those. We have to make a transformation, a qualitative shift because in your villages that’s the biggest demand. People ask you about these things… ‘What about jobs for us?'” he said.
To support that transition, Jagdeo said the government intends to establish innovation and technical support centres in every administrative region, a proposal contained in the PPP/C’s 2025 manifesto.
He said the hubs would promote diversification and innovation and provide organised support for the development of economic activities rather than relying solely on traditional extension services.
Jagdeo said the government would work with villages over the coming months to identify viable long-term projects suited to each community.
As an example, he suggested expanding coconut cultivation in Region Two to supply processed coconut water for export to Caribbean markets.
He said establishing large-scale coconut plantations on village lands could generate “tens of millions of dollars” annually after the trees mature while creating employment in cultivation, harvesting and transportation.
He also pointed to honey production as another possible income-generating activity, recalling an earlier government initiative that established hundreds of beehives.
“Honey doesn’t spoil, it’s unlimited demand too,” Jagdeo said, adding that such activities could provide sustainable income for villages with relatively modest labour requirements.
Jagdeo urged Toshaos to identify projects that would be commercially viable over the long term and said the government would examine ways to support those initiatives through investment and technical assistance.
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