Suriname

Suriname lies on the northern coast of South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Guyana to the west, French Guiana to the east, and Brazil to the south.

Dutch is the official language in Suriname, although for some ethnic groups (especially among the older generation), it is actually a second language. English is also widely spoken. Sranan Tongo, the native language of Creoles, is spoken by the younger Amerindian population, and is a lingua franca among others.

Suriname is a sparsely populated country of 493,000 inhabitants living within 163,820 square kilometers, an area slightly larger than Georgia. Eighty-five percent of the population lives in urban and semi-urban areas along the Atlantic coastal zone. Approximately 33,000 Maroons (descendants of escaped African slaves) and 7,000 Amerindians, the principal inhabitants of Suriname's interior, are faced with many problems affecting their socio-economic development. Rural communities are located primarily on rivers and are isolated from the national capital because of poor and infrequent transportation. The rural communities' social structure is well-defined, effective, and follows indigenous Amerindian and African traditions. Both the Amerindian and Maroon communities are faced with such problems as lack of basic education, healthcare, proper nutrition, and employment. Suriname's centralized system of government traditionally focuses on the capital of Paramaribo and generates a high sense of dependency among the indigenous and tribal peoples of Suriname's Amazon region.

In 1995, the government of Suriname requested Peace Corps' assistance in rural community development activities for the Amerindian and Maroon communities. Volunteers work in two project areas: community health and small business development. Working in the interior, Volunteers work on activities that increase awareness of basic hygiene practices, encourage parental involvement in educational activities, promote economical development of community members, and conduct life skills training, incorporating healthy water and sanitation practices.

Last updated Sep 27 2008