A member of the Wowetta Women's Group making farine
Over the past years, numerous organisations have been developing and implementing initiatives to empower Guyanese women and assist them in gaining an independent status, while developing the community in general. The mission to empower women is assiduously pursued by the Wowetta Women’s Group (WWG) located in North Rupununi in Region Nine.
About Wowetta
Wowetta is surrounded by the Pakaraima Mountains and the Makarapan Mountain to the eastern range of the Kanuku Mountains that divide the Rupununi savannahs into two halves, namely the North Rupununi Savannahs that are predominantly occupied by the Makushis, and South Rupununi Savannahs, occupied by the Wapishinas and the Wai Wais. Wowetta is surrounded by pristine tropical rainforest and is one of the villages that border the Iwokrama International Rainforest protected area.
The people survive by subsistence farming and hunting. Lately, there has been a push for eco-tourism to promote conservation of natural resources by the community.
As a result, Wowetta attracts tourists who want to see the cock- of-the-rock, a bird unique only to Guyana.
Wowetta Women’s Group
The Wowetta Women’s Group was formed on February 2, 2008, but started major operations on September 9, 2009. In an interview with Guyana Times Sunday Magazine, group chairperson Priscilla Torres stated that the overall objective of the project is to help improve the livelihoods of the women employed by the group, and to ensure that regular employment remains available within the community. Also, the members ensure that the WWG functions as a business entity and is able to invest in its own operations. It is hoped that, in so doing, the WWG will be able to expand on its operations, secure additional markets, and build on its position as a valuable source of employment.
There are currently 49 members in the group, and they are engaged in cassava processing work. They are also involved in vegetable gardening, sewing and baking. They produce their staple food by processing the cassava into end products of cassava bread, farine, cassareep and tapioca. This is what they eat as their main meal, with their fish or meat.
The Women’s Group of Wowetta has started to process in large quantities cassava that is supplied to the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs as part of its relief program to help the flood affected villages. The processing engages the efforts of a number of women – from the initial harvesting to the final stage. This project is made more efficient by a mill, which makes processing somewhat less labour-intensive.
The processing requires harvesting the cassava and soaking it for a period of four days. Thereafter, the women return to their farms to harvest fresh bitter cassava.
When these are transported to the processing site, the women then scrape the skins of the cassava. The peeled cassava is then washed with clean water and placed into the cassava mill. Some 34 bags of cassava make a total of between eight and 10 bags of farine. When the required amount is produced, it is then sold to the buyer, and subsequently the women are paid for their labour from the income generated. Torres noted that the group, which is made of both young and old women, is working diligently to expand their work.
However, the group needs more support and funding to make that possible. The ladies from the group recently participated in Feminition, the women’s expo held at the National Stadium, Providence.
“This was a boost and great publicity for our group, and we hope that more of such events, which can facilitate us, can be held,” she said. (Taken from Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)
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