Guyanese Online

Rosaliene in Guyana National Service Uniform, 1976

When Guyana’s first Executive President created the Guyana National Service (GNS) in October 1973, he had a vision for “a new Guyana Man and Woman, oriented towards their role in nation building.” He had envisaged a nation working together, with respect for each other, to develop our hinterland regions and defend our territory (1973 State Paper of the GNS, www.guyanapnc.org).

Over the next twenty six years of the paramilitary organization’s existence, thousands of Guyanese youth spent a year or more at GNS hinterland centers cultivating and processing cotton, black-eye beans, peanuts, and other cash crops. For young men and women without job prospects, the GNS provided an opportunity to learn and develop new skills.

When the first GNS hinterland center began operations, I was a second-year undergraduate at the University of Guyana. In my final year, completion of one year…