Protected Area Planned to Safeguard Red Bank Macaws

According to Minister Habet, community response to the plan has been mixed. Some residents have questioned what direct benefits the village would receive, particularly from tour operators who bring visitors to view the macaws. During consultations, government officials suggested community-based opportunities such as handicraft production, small food establishments, and formal agreements with tour operators to contribute financially to village development. Habet says the possibility of introducing an entrance fee is also being explored.

 

Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development

‘I think it is a very sensitive area. We don’t want anymore lands to be issued in and around the area. We have to do another visit to speak to the Mennonite community who are doing farming because I think they have encroached too far close to the river. And also we need to speak to the landowners in the area because there is a possibility that we can also engage the private land owners and they can also decide to allow some of their lands, even though it’s private, to be part of the sanctuary. I think that there are mixed feelings because some of the villagers feel like, well, the questions they ask is, what are we getting from it? Why are the tour operators giving back anything to the community. So when we had the meeting, I suggested, well, the women can start doing some handicraft. You can open little restaurants to provide breakfast or lunch for the tourists that pass by, and the tour operators can have an agreement with the village council that they will maybe provide some of the monies that they get towards the development of the village. But also the way it’s operating right now, there is no fee, as an entrance fee, but if there is an entrance fee established and maybe PACT will be able to get into the store to assist them. We will do the training and then they will be able to collect the fees for entrance into the area where the macaws are and maybe something like from that can go to villages. So mixed feelings from the villagers and then from the tour operators and of course the village council, which also wants to see something go towards the development of the village, maybe upgrading their community center and things like that.”