Guyana to invest $12M in villages founded by freed slaves
GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — The South American country of Guyana is investing $12 million to help revitalize coastal villages founded by freed slaves after emancipation in the 1830s.
Finance Minister Winston Jordan says the money will be used to clear land for crops, improve drainage and irrigation and dig more than 150 kilometers (about 90 miles) of new canals to provide water for farms.
An estimated 35,000 people in towns such as Buxton are expected to benefit.
Government officials have blamed the previous administration of largely ignoring development in the Afro-Guyanese villages. That government was headed by descendants of Indian immigrants.
Jordan said Thursday that most of the money is a loan from the Caribbean Development Fund.
