Amerindian Development Fund – Village Economy Development

The Amerindian Development Fund (ADF) was established to provide funding to support the socio-economic development of Amerindian communities and villages. One hundred and fifty-four (154) communities and villages; each of which has its own distinct cultural identity, heritage, language, and traditional economic activities, participated in the project. Each participating community and village developed Community Development Plans (CDPs) which reflected the people’s overall self determination to access niche opportunities for economic development and prioritized community projects for financing.

Overall, the LCDS ADF Village Economy Development project had a positive but mixed impact on the socio-economic and environmental development of Amerindian communities in Guyana. While it succeeded in enhancing entrepreneurial capabilities and improving quality of life, the project’s ambitious scope, high costs, and sustainability challenges highlighted areas for improvement in future initiatives.

Results

The Project Management Unit (PMU) effectively managed a substantial workload involving 161 CDPs, monitoring activities, training sessions, and administrative tasks. Proactive solutions expedited procurement processes, and partnerships with state and non-state actors facilitated implementation. Training and technical assistance demands from communities indicated a strong need for continuous support. Despite some challenges, the project was executed with notable efficiency.

The project yielded mixed results in its effectiveness. Institutional knowledge was significantly enhanced, with Ministry of Amerindian Affairs (MoAA) staff gaining expertise in business management within remote communities. The wealth of information on the social structures of these communities now available to Guyanese institutions represents a significant achievement. At the community level, the ADF facilitated the first entrepreneurial experiences for many villages. Out of 154 villages with active projects, 91% received the full disbursement of the GYD 5,000,000 grant, underscoring the project’s positive impact on the communities’ quality of life.

Success varied widely, with larger communities demonstrating better outcomes due to stronger governance, prior business experience, and effective community management teams (CMTs). Nonetheless, pervasive challenges such as limited community capacity, ownership issues, and market access persisted. Many communities would benefit from additional training and technical assistance.

Gender equity and women’s empowerment were addressed, particularly through projects focused on food security, transportation, and village shops, directly benefiting women. However, further gender-specific activities, such as leadership training and gender sensitivity workshops, would have bolstered these efforts.

The evaluation concluded that working on local development with indigenous communities in Guyana is highly challenging due to economic, educational, infrastructural, and logistical constraints. Despite these challenges, the project was relevant and aligned with the priorities and interests of the UNDP, Norway, the Government of Guyana, and local communities. However, the project’s ambitious design, covering 161 communities across seven sectors with limited PMU staff, led to several implementation challenges. High implementation costs meant that the grant value of G$5 million was often insufficient to significantly impact local economic development.

The project demonstrated notable efficiency despite its constraints, with the PMU effectively managing a substantial workload. However, it lacked a robust Knowledge Management strategy for shared learning among communities. The intervention enhanced institutional knowledge about these communities’ social structures, which will benefit future initiatives. Local-level results were mixed, with success tied to community size, governance, transparency, CMT capacities, and prior business experience. Sector-specific risks varied, with crop-related projects being more precarious than stable transportation and village shop enterprises. The main challenge moving forward is ensuring the sustainability of the project’s progress and results, necessitating integrated sustainability measures in future designs.