Toshao Vanessa Richards: Providing the necessary leadership to Achiwib

Many people would do whatever it takes to aid in the development of the communities they were born into and that is why 31-year-old Vanessa Richards decided to campaign to become the first female Toshao of Achiwib Village.
Achiwib Village is a small Wapichan (Wapishana) settlement some 130 miles from Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo). The Village has about 561 residents who are all working towards the development of the community. The name Achiwib is from the Wapichan language and it means lily flower.
This year, the villagers collectively decided to elect Richards as their Toshao, breaking away from the tradition of having a male figure in the leadership position. I caught up with Richards at the opening of the National Toshaos Council (NTC) Conference on Monday, and we had an intense discussion about her vision for the development of the community as well as what pushed her into the leadership chair.
First, I must say, at first glance, I underestimated Richards since she looked very shy and reserved, but as we got into conversation mode, I slowly realised why she was elected Toshao. Richards is the mother of five and tells me that while she was growing up, life was as tough as it could get. She remembers the struggles to get an education, but notes the love and camaraderie among the villagers far superseded the issues they had.
She remembers playing in the fields as well as going into the farms with her parents. Richards says as she was growing she noted that only men were in the positions of power while the women remained homemakers. The decision for women to be homemakers was not because that was expected of them, but because they were not motivated to do more.
Therefore, the men continued to lead the Village. As Richards aged and started her own family, she felt the need for things to change and became actively involved in village governance at the age of 25. She joined the Village Council and actively helped to develop her small community.
However, she noticed that the level of leadership was still lacking within the community and the residents were not motivated.
“I have seen that there is a lot to do to develop the community. For the past we were left out on so much, because the people didn’t have the leadership. I have seen that my village people, they want to work, but they didn’t have the leader to put them forward and I am really happy to be the first female Toshao and I hope together we can change things,” Richards says.
She said now that she is in the leadership chair, it is her intention to ensure that all the residents work as a team to develop the community. She noted that the main source of income is farming and it is her hope that they can diversify the ways of earning money. It is her mission to ensure that the villagers are positioned to remove themselves from below the poverty line.
“I want the assistance of the villagers to help me to build up the capacity as leader in the village. It was hard work to get to this position and I want them to be proud of me. I was in the Council for six years and I have sacrificed a lot for the people and even my family time I sacrificed.”
When I asked Richards how it felt to be the first woman leader of her village, she looked at me and smiled. Then, she slowly said, “No different from how it would feel if you were sitting here.”She went on to explain that she would like to see women taking up more leadership positions so as to bring a balance.
In the end, I asked her what would she say to a young girl looking at her as a role model, and she responded: “Follow your heart and dreams and don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t do it.” (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)