Guyana

We have supported indigenous peoples across Guyana since 2003 in defending their rights, especially against incursions by extractive industries. We provide legal support for partners as they advocate for the recognition and protection of their rights at both the regional and national level.

Country Overview

Indigenous peoples in Guyana face a range of issues that affect their rights to self-determination and to their lands, territories, and resources. These include traditional extractive activities such as mining on their traditional lands without their consent, as well as the emerging issue of forest carbon trading. Underlying these issues is a national legal system that falls short of international standards for the protection and fulfilment of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, both on paper and in practice.

Communities and Indigenous Peoples' organizations in Guyana have responded to these issues by advocating for legislative changes, legal empowerment and community capacity building  e.g. through conducting community-led workshops on relevant topics. They have also strengthened their self-governance through the creation of territorial management plans, cultural heritage policies, and Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) protocols.

In Guyana, our work focuses on:

Indigenous Peoples’ land titling advocacy

• Community efforts to monitor and protect their territories from external threats such as mining, logging and large-scale agricultural development
• Community efforts to strengthen their own representative institutions, including district councils
• Work by communities to document their cultural heritage
• Advocacy around the revision of the Amerindian Act to bring it in line with Guyana’s legal obligations and international human rights standards

Currently, our work is supporting:

• Indigenous Peoples’ efforts to advance land titling and legal recognition of their traditional lands
• The SRDC to document their cultural heritage
• The SRDC to develop cultural heritage policies and FPIC policies
• Communities around Guyana, including the SRDC and Chinese Landing, in their struggle to defend their rights against gold mining on their lands without their consent.
• Indigenous Peoples’ efforts to defend their rights to FPIC and effective participation in the context of forest carbon trading

Recent Reports

Our Land, Our Life: Guyana National Land Tenure Assessment

Video