The Committee of Supply of the National Assembly on Tuesday evening approved two sums of monies for rehabilitative works on the Amerindian Hostel, located on Princess Street, Georgetown.
In response to a query from Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Dawn Hasting-Williams, Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai clarified that the allocated $25 million is designated for a range of essential works. These include electrical and maintenance work, plumbing, repainting of both concrete and wooden surfaces within the internal building, routine servicing of the roof, replacement of doors in the male and female dormitories, the dining hall door, and the male washroom.
Moreover, the funds will be utilized for repairs to the front step of the female dormitories, addressing issues with the floor in the new wing, and undertaking general repairs to the male washroom at the Amerindian residence.
The committee also approved the sum of $45 million which Minister Sukhai explained will be used for the expansion of the kitchen at the hostel as well as constructing a concrete bridge. Opposition MP, Ronald Cox, cited recent images circulating on Facebook with the hostel being in a deplorable state, and then thanked the minister for catering for repairs to the hostel.
The Committee of Supply also approved a total of $4.6 billion for the Amerindian Development Fund (ADF) programme.
Minister Sukhai explained that the allocations for various programmes in detail. For the Community Support Officers (CSOs) programme, there is over $1 billion allocated for stipends and $150,000 for training. Presidential grants have been approved at $392 million, while economic projects have received a total allocation of $343 million.
Furthermore, projects targeting women have been allocated $354 million, agriculture development projects aimed at advancing food security have received $742 million, and tourism projects have been allotted $132 million. As for infrastructure projects, this has a budget of $397 million.
Additionally, there is an allocation of $310 million for land transportation and support to villages, $57 million for water transportation, $10 million for communication equipment, $50 million for language and cultural projects, and $80 million for advancing education and the revision of the Amerindian Act of 2006.
Opposition MP, Vincent Henry queried about the completion of the revision of the Amerindian Act. Minister Sukhai stated that while there is no timeline as yet for the completion of the revision of the Act, which she explained sometimes takes years, she assured that the government is committed to revamping the legislation.
Notably, the sum of $800 million was approved for the Amerindian Land Titling (ALT) programme, $100 million for the annual National Toshaos Conference and $147 million for the Amerindian Heritage Month celebration slated for September.
As part of the government Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), hundreds of Amerindian villages receive a portion of the proceeds of the sale of the carbon credits to finance Village Sustainability Plans. This year, the villages will receive some $2.7 billion.
Overall, the total sum of $9 billion was approved for Amerindian development programmes in 2024.
