The Iwokrama story—a Commonwealth cliff-hanger

Abstract

The Iwokrama rainforest programme is unique, and it is a Commonwealth initiative. In 1989 Guyana, a heavily indebted poor country, assigned nearly 1 million acres of pristine rainforest to the international community, half to be managed as a wilderness preserve for the study of its biodiversity, and half for its forest to be harvested sustainably. The programme aims to show how the conservation of tropical forests can go hand in hand with the generation of economic and social benefits—an objective at the centre of the Rio agenda of 1992. A five-year operational plan ended in 2002 with important gains, significant international partners and a new business-oriented board of international trustees. But it was sharply hampered by lack of assured funding to aid the transition from donor-dependency to self-sufficiency. A new business plan will be presented this year, aimed at enhancing income-generating activities and launching a Trust Fund. But it has become clear that a research project like this cannot survive without some continuing subsidy. Unless its finances can be put on a sustainable basis, the Iwokrama project will at best live from hand to mouth but at worst could die of inanition. This would shame the Commonwealth and deprive the wider community of a hugely important asset. It must not be allowed to happen.