In the Palm Garden, President Jennifer Simons announced that the state will formally recognize Indigenous people as first residents. She also wants a law to take effect prohibiting new concessions in Indigenous habitats after additional consultation with village chiefs and granmans. According to Simons, incidents like those in Pikin Saron and Powakka could have been prevented with timely legislation.
The VSB sees opportunities in cooperation with CESECEG for professionalization of border management, security and tourism product development. Best practices such as the multifunctional border center in Guyana-French border region are suggested as models. Thresholds such as high tourist taxes are mentioned, a follow-up mission is planned during the Guyane Excellence Fair (September 26-28).
At the conclusion of the OAS-SADD program, Minister Dirk Currie (OWC) emphasized that mentales health and peer-to-peer conversations are crucial for behavior change in schools. He called for a structural youth participation mechanism in education policy and called on the business community to provide sustained support for SADD. BLSE reported that the program has been scaled up since 2022; 12 schools are supported annually.
The VHP recognizes that the legal entrenchment of land rights lags behind and refers to international standards (including UN Declaration) as the norm. The party says it is unswervingly committed to legal entrenchment "as an inalienable right" and is open to inter-party dialogue to finalize the issue. Call: joint responsibility over party politics.
During the commemoration in Sana Budaya, Minister Currie underscored that Suriname's multiple cultures must continue to coexist. With the theme "Towards a Brighter Future," the program included traditional performing arts, Pasar Malam and sports. The government congratulated the community and called for the heritage to be actively passed on to young people.
Minister Mike Noersalim (LVV) starts training inspectors for enforcement at landing sites and intensifies consultations with the fishermen's collective. Goal: protection of fishing grounds, improved compliance and higher sector productivity. The minister warned that corruption undermines policy goals and called for inter-institutional cooperation with agriculture as an adjacent growth area.
