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Still, the Vice President assured people that Government Ministers and their technical staff will be engaging with communities directly to determine agreeable solutions.

Plaisance vendors staged protests on Tuesday after they were served with a seven-day notice that they had to move to facilitate road expansion works. Jagdeo on Tuesday said that notice was “crude” and should not have been sent out before officials consulted with the people who would be affected.

Now, while the stakeholders hope to find these mutually-agreeable solutions, Jagdeo said the vendors have been given six months to relocate from the areas where the expansion will occur.

But he does not believe that this extension will in any way delay the roadworks. He said the road spans about 25 miles from Georgetown to Mahaica and there are enough unoccupied spaces where the contractor can begin work in the meantime.

The trees that will be used to help Karrau earn more are among Guyana’s forest resources, helping it earn these carbon credits in the first place.

Indigenous communities are regarded as the custodians of Guyana’s vast, intact forests. Many of these communities are found in forested areas and help authorities monitor activities, be it logging or mining, that impact the forests.

Deforestation in the country, over the past decade, has ranged between 0.02% to 0.06%; it is among the lowest rates in the world. And Karrau believes it will be able to continue aiding the sustainable management of Guyana’s forests even as it intensifies logging and sawmilling.

Toshao Cornelius believes the direct allocation of funds from the carbon credits deal is one that helps to reward Indigenous communities for their environmental stewardship.

“As Indigenous peoples, I think we are being rewarded for our stewardship.

“I await other companies to buy the remaining carbon credits so that we can continue bridging the gap that exists between the coast and the hinterland,” the Toshao said.

How exactly does this venture work, though?

But before the communities got the money, they were required to open a new bank account for their funds to be deposited into. Additionally, they had to create Village Development Plans that outline how the money will be spent. Ideally, those plans were created after in-village consultations.

Toshao Cornelius, for example, said Karrau’s projects were identified by villagers and included in the community’s development plan. The community also plans to purchase a boat and engine to help transport children and other residents, as well as a generator for electricity.

Communities elsewhere are pursuing similar initiatives.

In the South Pakaraima area of Region Nine (Upper Takutu- Upper Essequibo), the Karasabai sub-district is set to receive GY$35.8 million (roughly US$170,000).

Regional Councillor for the subdistrict, Vania Albert, highlighted some plans several communities in the subdistrict have.

Rukumuta, for example, will upgrade the Corona Falls trail in an attempt to attract tourists there. Other infrastructural works, such as constructing community bridges, building a fuel depot, and expanding the village shop, will help the village cater to tourists.

Tigerpond, Albert shared, hopes to expand agriculture; a banana farm is in the works. Other projects in this community include purchasing sewing machines for the local women’s group and reforesting water cedar plants.

The community of Pai Pang hopes to invest in equipment that will help villagers process cassava grown there; the community will also spend on maintaining internal roads and purchasing solar-powered street lights.

Among the plans for Kokshebai, according to Albert, is to purchase pigs, sheep, and chickens so that the community can get into animal rearing on a larger scale. With these plans, Kokshebai will also invest in fencing the animal-rearing and farming areas.

And the story repeats itself in other communities. Toshaos, the Village councils, and the residents themselves are exploring how they can earn more while upgrading their communities’ environment.

Guyana’s Vice President, hours before announcing how the first tranche of funds would be divided among the indigenous communities, said the government hoped the communities would spend their allocations, at least in part, on income-generating ventures.

He, however, noted that the government did not want to dictate how the funds would be spent. Instead, he said community consultations were needed.

The Toshao of Bethany in Region Two (Pomeroon- Supenaam), Sonia Latchman, explained that the residents in her village identified six areas they wanted to focus on: health, education, nature and the environment, governance, livelihood development, and culture and tradition.

“Having come up with those projects, the village decided to look at the priority projects.

“These projects were passed by a village general meeting,” she said.

Bethany, like Karrau, got GY$24 million. Toshao Latchman said the community wants to boost poultry production, so it is investing in birds and developing the pens and stations needed. Bethany will also invest in a tractor to aid in ongoing farming and logging.

At a recent press conference, Vice President Jagdeo confirmed that the funds designated for Indigenous communities have been deposited into “over 240” bank accounts.

“Some have already started to draw down; I am aware that we are making progress in this regard,” he said.

This story was published with the support of the Caribbean Climate Justice Journalism Fellowship, which is a joint venture of Climate Tracker and Open Society Foundations.