Feasibility of Warrou language project questionable

Dear Editor,

We witness with relief a semblance of will from the Indigenous Peoples Affairs Ministry to safeguard the cultural heritage of Guyana’s first peoples, by investing two million dollars in the revival of the Warrou language. Such an initiative from the Allicock administration was long overdue.

After the Arawak Language Revival Project was implemented in September 2013 in Capoey, Region 2, the then Amerindian Affairs Ministry through its Projects Department, was looking into the project’s expansion to allow native Warrou villages to benefit from the same opportunity. One is subsequently happy to see that despite a long wait of over a year, the Allicock administration has finally decided to proceed in this direction.

However, it is difficult to guarantee the feasibility of the project by handing over a cheque of a lump sum of two million dollars to the beneficiaries. This does not necessarily provide assurance that younger generations will assimilate the language and other aspects of their cultural heritage with which they are unacquainted.

When I drafted the Arawak Language Revival project in 2013, the Ministry was fully responsible for implementing and monitoring all activities. These included specifying a timeframe with deliverables, ensuring that a teacher was assigned and paid every month and providing learning material for both the teacher and participating children. The teacher was also tasked with submitting monthly progress reports to the Ministry’s assigned Projects Officer, based on the information he would have collected as well as evaluations conducted. This represented a pilot project for Amerindian language preservation.

The unit responsible for implementing and monitoring the project was the Projects Department under the supervision of the Project Coordinator and the above mentioned Projects Officer then assigned to Region 2, both of whom are still employed at the Ministry.

Unfortunately, supervision of the Arawak Language Revival Project was poor due to insufficient commitment from the unit and the Ministry. The overall cost for implementing this pilot in 2013 was some $2 million per year. It is subsequently difficult to imagine how the same sum can now cover other activities such as “craft”.

Now, it appears that the Allicock administration is limiting its responsibilities, by simply handing over money without a sustainable plan to ensure that positive results are guaranteed in the Warrou language project.

The Indigenous Peoples Affairs Ministry ought to have taken example from the pilot, strengthening its weaknesses – principally managerial issues from the Projects Department – so as to optimise results for the Warrou project.

Laziness and laxity however, seem to have defined the laid-back and laissez-faire attitude of the Ministry in dealing with indigenous affaires. To date, no one knows the implementation status of the Arawak Language Revival Project, nor if it has been renewed or scrapped. We have seen no progress reports from the Ministry, despite that the subject teacher confirmed having faithfully submitted his monthly reports to the Projects Department.

Consequently, the Warrou project seems to be more a matter of form than substance, and therefore limits appreciation for the Ministry’s investment which is seemingly nothing more than a short-lived handout.

Hopefully, technical expertise would guide similar future initiatives, to enhance chances of a successful learning experience both for Amerindians and for the Government of Guyana.

Sincerely,

Anna Correia