Iwokrama hoping to kick off income generating projects next year
The International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development is working towards getting some of its income generating projects off the ground by next year, director-general of the Centre, David Cassells has stated. Cassells said the Centre is at present seeing some cash flow but is aiming to substantially increase this by the first quarter of 2001. The Board of Trustees of the Iwokrama project held a meeting here last week and also convened a public forum. Approximately half of Iwokrama's 360,000 hectares will be maintained in its current pristine state as a functioning rain forest reserve. The other half forms the sustainable utilisation area. This area will be managed for production of forest goods and services, experimental research and non-consumptive uses such as eco-tourism. One of Iwokrama's aims is to eventually become self-financing and these commercial ventures will help achieve this goal. Wherever possible, these operations will be undertaken in partnership with the private sector. In its business plan, Iwokrama notes that special contributions have been made by Guyana and special benefits must flow to it. Many of Iwokrama's activities, commercial and otherwise, will be closely linked with the domestic business sector and economy of Guyana. The Iwokrama forest is surrounded by small Amerindian communities in the Rupununi Savannahs just beyond the southern boundary. The Centre said although the strong historical dependence of these communities on the forest is now much weaker, they still retain much of their traditional knowledge of the forest. Through the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB), the communities have expressed a strong desire to record that knowledge formally and make use of it commercially. Chairman of the NRDDB, Sydney Allicock, told a gathering at a public forum held at the Le Meridien Pegasus last week that the communities were initially concerned about the programme being undertaken by Iwokrama when it first started. The communities kept track of the activities being conducted by the Centre and had some difficulties at first with a few but these were sorted out after consultations, Allicock said. He stated that 13 communities in the area and the Centre have developed a partnership. It was felt by the Amerindians that Iwokrama could not exist without them being a part of it, he said. "We would like to see Iwokrama survive for Guyana's sake and the rest of the world. We hope to see it develop soon to serve as a model for the world to follow," Allicock stated. The Centre's business plan has had the benefit of a range of advice from various professional sources. There were also discussions with a range of operators in the local timber extraction and processing industry, as well as the tourism sector. Among the economic ventures the Centre is pursuing are carbon offset investments, bio-diversity prospecting, value-added processing, arts and endowments. Iwokrama is a site for research and development on sustainable utilisation of tropical forests. The Guyana government dedicated the site to the international community to demonstrate that tropical forests can provide economic benefits without destroying biodiversity. At the public forum participants pointed out the need to sensitise the general public about the role of Iwokrama and how Guyana will benefit from the work being carried out there. Members of the public stated that the information being made available by the Centre is more of a scientific nature and not clear enough for the ordinary man to fully comprehend.
|