00:17From the colonial streets of Clarines to the heart of the
00:22Cumanagoto indigenous communities in eastern Venezuela, today we'll show you
00:27how grassroots organizations are driving local development. Let's see what it's all about.
00:34Crossing the western plains of Answa-Tegui on the way to Clarines means venturing into a
00:40corridor of low savannas and farming fields where the Cumanagoto indigenous peoples keep
00:45their territorial memory alive.
00:54There lies the community of Maracas, a Cumanagoto settlement that greets visitors with the
01:00word Mueyipun, a welcome in their native language. Here, the commune organization is growing stronger
01:06by driving key projects such as access to drinking water.
01:12We are at the water treatment plant, which serves 340 families and 600 residents. Before, we
01:24relied on water flowing from the Santa Clara Dam. Now we drink clean water, and we've benefited
01:31from the new pipes. We have it in our community for our children, for our teenagers, for our
01:38residents, and for neighboring communities as well, so they can come here.
01:46In its rural streets, the community of Maracas preserves its ancestral legacy through an indigenous
01:51commune council. Through this council, they are prioritizing the replacement of the roof
01:56roof on the Centralized National School in the National Public Consultation.
02:01During this round of consultations, the second edition, we receive funding for part of the
02:06stage roofing. We can carry out the projects ourselves with the money that comes to the commune.
02:13We ensure that the work is completed and executed in the best possible way.
02:18From the An-Suat-Tegi region in eastern Venezuela, where colonial history remains alive in every corner,
02:25it is clear that the true driving force of this town is its people. Here, the collective effort
02:30demonstrates that development can only be achieved through commune organization.
02:35And now we have our show break coming up.
02:37.
