Guyana Guide Training

Guyana Guide Training

Project Specifications: Project Planning and Management, Training and Education, Facilitation, Cross-Cultural Communication 

Guyana is poised to become a major ecotourism destination. Engaging community-based tourism operations in local villages and other ecotourism operations in training was an additional goal. The need for interpretive guide training was noted beyond the birding identification training many guides had received. Engaging community-based tourism operations in local villages and other ecotourism operations in training was an additional goal.

Lennox Insites designed, developed and presented the interpretive skills training course and facilitated the 14-day course with support from a US contractor as well as specific training for the Kaieteur National Park rangers.

SITE

Guyana is a former British Colony and the only English-speaking country in South America and faces many of the same issues that most emerging countries do. However, with intact habitat (80%+ of its original rainforest) and a commitment to a low carbon development strategy, Guyana is poised to become a major ecotourism destination.

Issue

Following international familiarization tours, the need for interpretive guide training among the country’s guide community was noted beyond the birding identification training many guides had received. Engaging community-based tourism operations in local villages and other ecotourism operations in training was an additional goal.

Solution

Over the course of two weeks in the first training session, 23 guides ranging in age from 18 to over 50 were trained and coached. Experience levels ranged from never having led a group of visitors (yet) to guides who accompany international visitors around the country.

The training, held in the interior North Rupununi District of Guyana, was open to guides from around the country. Most of the students were Amerindian which reflected the population of this interior region of the country. Four days of interpretive skills training was followed by classes in risk management, customer service, natural history and anthropology.

The group moved around to four different locations so guides could see the diversity of eco-lodges and operations. As an additional experience, an overnight river trip on the Burro Burro River was taken to a hammock camp operated by Surama Village. Travel on the interior rivers is common for access to some of the villages and better wildlife viewing.

ROLE

Lennox Insites designed, developed and presented the interpretive skills training course and facilitated the rest of the 14-day course with support from the US contractor. In addition to this program, Lennox Insites also flew into Kaieteur National Park and taught a two-day interpretive skills course to national park rangers.

Within the first two days of training, the US AID Program Officer for Guyana, the Guyana Minister of Amerindian Affairs and the Director of the Guyana Tourism Authority all paid a visit to the training site illustrating the high profile the training had for the country.

Follow-up training two months later, engaged the guides to practice more of their skills and to coach lodge owners and management in providing visitor-focused interpretive materials.