Forty-seven indigenous women and girls in Region One are now better equipped with basic reading, writing, and numeracy skills after graduating from a program sponsored by Food for the Poor Guyana. 

The Adult Literacy and Numeracy Project was first launched in Baramita in 2024 and later expanded to the community of Arakaka.

Chief Executive Officer of Food for the Poor, Andrea Benjamin told NCN News the initiative has made a significant impact on participants since then. 

She explained that some who held a pencil for the very first time can now spell and sign their names, write their children’s names, and better manage everyday tasks that require reading and writing. 

“Most of those women when it came to collecting the cash grant for their students, for their children, were doing thumbprints. And just after that first batch, we had a cash grant distribution, the government of Guyana, to the children there in the school. And those women were able to write their names. That was one of the most impactful things,” she said.

Another 15 women are currently preparing to graduate in the coming weeks. Benjamin said that after the three-month comprehensive training is completed, the organisation will look at offering more advanced training. 

“We know we may not be able to take them to tertiary, where you’re able to attend a tertiary institution, but we want to give them enough that they can maneuver well in their community. They can be confident, they can sign documents, they can understand documents presented to them and so forth,” Benjamin further explained.

As Guyana prepares to observe International Women’s Day on March 8th, the organisation is reaffirming its commitment to women empowerment. 

The program, which began two years ago with support from the organisation’s partners in Canada, is aimed at ensuring women are equally equipped for personal growth and development in a rapidly changing world.