Plan Nacional de Uso el Suelo de Guyana
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Formulating Institution
This National Land Use Plan was developed by the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC), Land Use Planning Section, with support from the Development of Land Use Planning Project (DLUPP) and financial support from the European Union. As such, this report is a substantive and contracted output from the DLUPP.
[Preface, pg. i]
Elaboration process
The planning team consisted of GL&SC staff supported by consultants. A steering committee, composed of representatives of institutions with various roles and responsibilities in land use planning, was established at the start of the project and met quarterly. In addition, regular presentations and workshops were held throughout the duration of the Project to present findings.
[Introduction, 1.5 Method of Compilation - 1.5.1 Planning Team, Pag.12]
Consultations for land use planning can be divided into two types; institutional and community stakeholder consultations. The institutional consultations were undertaken mainly in Georgetown and followed the pattern of an initial consultation to introduce the aims of the Project followed by a longer consultation to gather information, discuss issues and obtain any available data. Other institutional consultations were also conducted in easily accessible Regions and during the course of a country-wide field trip in September 2011.
Community stakeholder consultations were undertaken in each Region of the country between February and May 2012.
At this stage an outline list of participants was drawn up. This varied between Regions but
usually included representatives of NDCs (or CDCs in Region 10), Water User Associations,
Co-ops and land users such as rice, cash crop and livestock farmers, aquaculture operators
and the like.
In regions with Amerindian Areas, Toshaus and other Amerindian representatives were invited. In Regions containing municipalities then the relevant representatives were invited. Regional representatives of major land use agencies such as GFC, GGMC and GL&SC were also invited. The aim of the regional stakeholder consultation was to gain an insight as to what the regional land use and planning issues were so that these could then guide the strategic level of the national land use plan.
[Introduction, 1.5 Method of Compilation - 1.5.3 Consultation, Pag.13]
Executive body
A first and immediate task in Plan implementation and monitoring is to clarify responsibility for land use planning, including implementation and monitoring. Currently, there is a lack of clarity at legislative and institutional levels. However, from a practical perspective, responsibility rests with the Land Use Policy and Planning section at the GLSC [Guyana Lands And Surveys Commission], except for urban planning which rests with the CH&PA [Central Housing and Planning Authority].
Pag. 166).
Main challenges
1. Institutional Problems
- Poor planning and co-ordination. Development planning is sectoral, piecemeal and ad hoc.
- Centralised decision-making. Planned developments have to be passed at Cabinet level in many cases. The GL&SC leases have to be approved at OP level. The CH&PA are allocated land by Cabinet. NDCs and RDCs feel they have little role in planning and decision-making.
- Institutions are reactive rather than proactive. The CH&PA react to housing applications, the MoTCI react to tourism, commerce and industrial applications, the GL&SC react to applications for land as opposed to planning and guiding development.
2. Policy and Legal Problems
- Overlapping mandates. Both the CH&PA and the GL&SC have mandates to undertake regional planning. GFC, GGMC and GL&SC can issue leases on same land overseen by EPA.
- Obsolete law governing planning. The Town & Country Planning Act dates from 1946 but is based on 1932 UK law (repealed in 1947 in UK). The law is 65 years old and has hardly ever been used.
- Land Use Policy. There is but limited guidance as to GoG policy. The Select Land Use Committee gives guidance on specific areas but there is no approved overall policy.
- Policy and Strategy Conflict. Potential for conflict between the need to develop resources and the LCDS which aims to preserve forest cover.
3. Land Tenure Problems
- Unclear Tenure Arrangements. A weak land market has led to a high proportion of abandoned (some due to salinity) and underused land. Squatting on reserves is rife. Improved land administration is required.
- Beneficial Occupation. Lack of effective monitoring and enforcement has led to a high degree of abandoned land and land not beneficially occupied.
- Coastal Land Pressure. Increasing population and economic opportunities is leading to land pressure on coastal plain. Abandoned and underused land is a hindrance to development. Zoning called for by stakeholders.
- Demarcation of Amerindian Land. Some overlap between Ameridian Land and leased land, need to identify actual and proposed Amerindian Areas.
4. Physical Problems
- Soils. Most soils are poor. Improved extension services required.
- Access. Much of Guyana is inaccessible with logging and mining tracks accessible by all wheel drive trucks only. There is a need to improve access to export goods. Monitoring of land use is hampered by poor access.
- Climate Change and Sea Level Rise.. In addition to developments (new and adaptive) on the coastal plain, there is a need to develop lands, infrastructure and urban areas in the interior.
- Historically poor D&I maintenance. Land in the coastal plain needs functioning D&I or it may become saline and be abandoned.
5. Socio-Economic Problems
- Small Market, Need to Export. Low population means small internal market and therefore agricultural and other investments are export driven. Poor access hampers investment.
- Poverty, Low Skills Base and Emigration. High poverty incidence, particularly inland. Reduces peoples’ ability to cope with shocks and make optimal land use decisions. Increases non sustainable land use practices. High degree of emigration by educated Guyanese lowers skill base.
Urban dimension
Altough there is not an urban approach to the NLUP, there is an approach to housing: There are several policies setting out the government’s thoughts on housing including increasing supply, faster disbursement of public land for housing and the development of land and housing markets. The National Land Use Plan can offer guidance as to the future spatial direction of housing and urban settlement but is limited by scale in proposing specific areas for housing development. (Pag. 12)
There are a number of options for the future direction of urban development and housing provision in Guyana. While the NLUP, looking at the national perspective, has rather concentrated on developments away from the coastal plain, it is highly likely that there will continue to be a high demand for housing land on the coastal plain meaning competition between housing, agriculture, livestock and aquaculture for highly valuable land. (Pag. 118)
Main objective of the urban dimension
- Any major urban development on the coastal plain will require a detailed land capability and current land use study to ensure that housing is located on appropriate land and does not occupy the best agricultural land or land that is liable to flood. An assessment of housing design to accommodate any future flooding should be incorporated into policy. (Pag. 118)
- A further policy issue relating to the development of urban areas and housing on the coastal plain centres on balancing the cost of defending the plain from seawater incursions, and drainage of the land, against the provision of infrastructure which would allow the development of urban areas on the White Sand Plateau immediately inland of the coastal plain. Land on the White Sand Plateau is of low quality for most land uses, apart from quarrying and urban or industrial development, so it could be promoted for urban expansion. (Pag. 118).
- Government policy should promote the development of nucleated urban settlements to facilitate provision of services such as water, power and waste treatment to these settlements, as well as making it easier to supply security, heath and education services and employment. Nuclear settlements also have an advantage in being able to attract commerce and employment generating activities that are not attracted to linear settlements. This concentration of people, housing, commerce and industry in particular areas is in line with the LCDS in that less land is then used for urban activities, with less competition with other land uses and with minimal deforestation. (Pag. 119)
- Urban development and housing could be promoted on former mining land thus reducing the impact of the development and the conflict with other land uses.
Urban strategic objectives
Strategic objectives in the housing sector are defined according to the region of the country.
For the Coastal Plain Region: Identify land for housing expansion, squatter regularisation, priority land not prime agricultural land, improve planning – no development on prime agric. land or areas liable to flood, prioritise use of abandoned land, improve drainage from housing developments. (Pag .137)
For the White Sand Plateau, Central Guyana, North Western Guyana: Improve planning – no development on prime agricultural land or areas liable to flood, ensure drainage from housing developments. (Pag. 141 - 144).
For Rupununi Savannas and SW Guyana: Rapid development of Lethem as commercial centre increased housing demand, Identify potential housing land away from flooding. (Pag. 148).
Operating instruments
Global Land Cover Network (GLCN 2006)
It is not made explicit in the official National Urban Policy document.
Gender
No gender focus was found in the National Urban Policy.
The NLUP avoids any attempt at prescription. Land use recommendations are not made; rather the Plan provides land use options for different parts of the country. In this way the Plan makes a major contribution to the decision process of a desired future state, which is intimately linked to the development directions adopted. However, in the absence of a defined desired future state, it is neither possible to address implementation to reach that state, nor undertake monitoring and evaluation of the implementation. (Pag. 166)
