We're passionate about cultural revalorisation!

Our mission is dedicated to fostering the social, economic, political, and cultural growth of Indigenous communities. We stand in solidarity with these communities to promote and defend their rights.

About the Amerindian People's Association (APA)

The Amerindian People’s Association (APA) was established in 1991 during a conference for Indigenous leaders in Georgetown. These leaders convened to discuss the pressing issues affecting their communities and recognised the need for an independent organization to represent their concerns, as these were largely ignored by the government. Key issues included the exploitation of natural resources on traditional Indigenous lands by large mining and logging companies, and various human rights abuses, including police brutality.

The APA was created to actively support community initiatives addressing human rights violations and to improve the overall conditions of the Indigenous Peoples of Guyana. Initially led by a Steering Committee, which later evolved into the Executive Committee, the APA held its First General Assembly in Georgetown in 1992. Since then, it has organised several more assemblies, with the most recent one held on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway in 2018.

Formal Recognition and Development

In January 1998, the APA was registered under the Friendly Societies Act (Laws of Guyana). The Association opened its first office in 1993 with part-time voluntary assistance. By 1994, the APA hired its first paid staff member and began taking more sustained actions to work with Indigenous communities on the various issues they faced. Since the inaugural Assembly, the APA has grown significantly, expanding the membership of its Executive Committee, extending its programs and outreach, and enhancing its capacity to respond to the needs of Indigenous communities throughout Guyana.

Our Mission

The APA is dedicated to fostering the social, economic, political, and cultural growth of Indigenous communities. We stand in solidarity with these communities to promote and defend their rights.

Our Goals

The long-term goal of the APA is to achieve legislative and policy changes that safeguard Indigenous rights comprehensively. We strive to enhance Indigenous representation by Indigenous peoples, disseminate information to Indigenous communities about their rights under national and international law, and promote the sustainable use of natural resources while ensuring environmental protection. Our objectives include securing participation in development activities and decision-making processes impacting the lives of Guyana's Indigenous peoples, and ensuring the state fulfils its obligations to provide essential services such as health, education, transportation, and communication to Indigenous communities.

Our Membership

The APA's membership comprises nearly forty Units spread across the country. The organization is governed by an Executive Committee that includes a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Assistant Secretary/Treasurer, thirteen regional representatives, a women's representative, and a youth representative.

The APA's central office is located in Georgetown and is primarily staffed by individuals from interior communities. These staff members handle the Association’s daily operations and serve as a vital link between local communities and national and international affairs.

Our Objectives

Promote, assert, and defend the rights of Indigenous Peoples of Guyana to self-determination, autonomous control over their institutions, ways of life, intellectual and cultural heritage, and economic, social, and cultural development. Support them in maintaining, developing, and strengthening their identities, cultures, languages, religions, and relationships with their lands, territories, and resources historically occupied and used.
Advocate for the recognition and respect of the traditions, customs, and laws of Indigenous Peoples, particularly those related to resource and land management and the transmission of land and resource rights among their members.
Safeguard, assert, defend, and promote the rights of Indigenous Peoples and their members to ownership, possession, use, and control of lands, territories, and resources historically occupied and used by them, using all legal means, including courts and international fora and tribunals.
Defend and ensure the full and free exercise of all internationally recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms, including economic, social, and cultural rights, of Indigenous individuals and peoples, by all legal means including courts and international fora and tribunals.
Promote compliance of domestic legislation and policy with international human rights standards, ensuring that Indigenous individuals, communities, and peoples benefit equally from the rights and opportunities accorded to other sectors of the Guyanese population.
Promote the establishment and maintenance of mechanisms for meaningful dialogue and equal partnership between Indigenous Peoples and the State, based on mutual respect, cooperation, and consent.
Promote respect for the value and dignity of all aspects of Indigenous cultures, languages, and ways of life.
Assert and defend the right of Indigenous Peoples to individually and collectively define themselves as Indigenous, be recognized as such, and freely determine their own membership in accordance with Indigenous customs, traditions, and laws.