– World Bank officialLand policy-making and land governance, particularly as it relates to REDD preparation is not yet an integrated function of the Guyana government. This is according to Senior Land Administration Specialist for the World Bank,China NFL Jerseys, Malcolm Childress.In a report prepared last month for the Annual World Bank Conference on Land Policy and Administration, Childress stated that State lands, Amerindian lands, forest management and mining activities are not being managed in an integrated fashion as a national REDD concept would likely call for.He further pointed out that to date, the problems created by this lack of integration and coordination have been localized and often occur in remote areas, and have been only marginally noticed by the international community.The purpose of the paper was to frame a discussion about the main elements of the land tenure and land management context in Guyana as they relate to the preparation of public programming for the introduction of measures for Reductions of Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) in Guyana, with particular attention to issues which may complicate the introduction of REDD mechanisms if they are not resolved.Childress pointed out in his presentation that while Guyana is an ideal location for the implementation of policies for the REDD programme, issues related to indigenous land tenure, demarcation of indigenous community land, resource rights, land use planning and land information systems may complicate the introduction and implementation of such policies.The World Bank specialist focused on eight issues which are relevant to the preparation phase for REDD and whose discussion in detail, with all stakeholders as part of the preparation for REDD, would likely strengthen the legal and informational basis for long term forest carbon and resource management.Definition of the State domain and indigenous domains and their full demarcation is one issue. Without the completion of the titling of communities, the communities will have a harder time to make claims on benefit streams emerging from REDD and there is the potential for disputes between the untitled communities and the State.Newer indigenous communities also pose a policy challenge, requiring a determination of how these areas will be treated from a legal point of view in the future, he explained.Boundary demarcation of existing Amerindian villages which has lagged behind titling, is important in order to protect communities from illegal encroachment and will be important in any REDD scheme to determine forest tenure boundaries.A related issue concerns the requests for extensions of titled communities, of which at least seven are pending. In a REDD scenario where there is an increased monetary value to standing timber, even in inaccessible location, extension claims and demarcation issues could become more problematic.Mining claims in indigenous communities pose another challenge to successful land management in Guyana.According to Childress, it is that the provisions of the Amerindian Act which permit exploration and large-scale mining in Amerindian communities over the objection of the community may lead to problems.He pointed to two cases in Chinese Landing and Arau Village which have already led to serious and ongoing disputes about this process, with allegations being made about inadequate consultations, inadequate environmental impact assessment and preparation and social conflict about the management of the process.“In preparing for REDD these issues will likely come under increasing international scrutiny and may be influential considerations to international investors interested in Guyana’s carbon sources” he statedAnother land issue is the case currently in court of a traditional land claim by six villages in the Upper Mazaruni River area. The case has been under litigation for eleven years.In the meantime extensive mining has continued in the disputed areas with adverse environmental consequences.“Without the resolution of this issue before the introduction of REDD schemes, the government and its development partners could be held up for intense international scrutiny around the length of time of the court case, the potential liability for environmental damages in the disputed area and questions about the final status of the disputed area,” said Childress.But what will take on more importance under REDD planning is the recognition of non-indigenous settlements in the country’s interior and the provision of land areas for future human settlements. These settlements are mostly small groups of residences for miners which are currently being regularized in a somewhat ad hoc manner by the State.In the future, land use planning and policy on the siting and creation of new settlements will likely be required to ensure that these settlements do not impinge on REDD-related land use agreements.These issues suggest a need to strengthen Guyana’s land information systems, whose management rests with the Lands and Surveys Commission.However, the data on mining and forest designations are held respectively by the GGMC and the GFC, not directly by the Lands and Surveys Commission.This means that it is not easy to understand the possible set of overlapping or conflicting use designations which may pertain to any specific location.Guyana has the bases to be able to implement an integrated policy and land management system, but will likely call for focused attention on inter-agency coordination and stronger inter-sectoral policy-making processes to accomplish it in the period of preparation for REDD. (Ursulla Ramdayal)
