Tumatumari is a community in the

Potaro-Siparuni Potaro-Siparuni (Region 8) is a region of Guyana. It borders the region of Cuyuni-Mazaruni to the north, the regions of Upper Demerara-Berbice and East Berbice-Corentyne to the east, the region of Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo to the south and ...

Region of

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

, located some 15 km upstream of the confluence of the Potaro and

Essequibo River The Essequibo River (; originally called by Alonso de Ojeda; ) is the largest river in Guyana, and the largest river between the Orinoco and Amazon River, Amazon. Rising in the Acarai Mountains near the Brazil–Guyana border, the Essequibo flows ...

s. It was initially an Amerindian settlement of

Arawak The Arawak are a group of Indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. The term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to different Indigenous groups, from the Lokono of South America to the Taíno (Island Arawaks), w ...

tribe but is now a mixture of different race groups similar to that of

Mahdia Mahdia ( ') is a Tunisian coastal city with 76,513 inhabitants, south of Monastir, Tunisia, Monastir and southeast of Sousse. Mahdia is a provincial centre north of Sfax. It is important for the associated fish-processing industry, as well as w ...

. The area was believed to be rich in gold and diamonds and mining was the main economic activity for several years. The fertile agricultural land in the area resulted in the establishment of a

Guyana National Service The Guyana National Service was a public service organization, including a paramilitary element, formed in Guyana in 1973 and disbanded in 2000, amidst some controversy. Function The service was created following recommendations by United Nation ...

(GNS) centre in the area in 1975. The centre concentrated on training young people to develop agricultural and technical skills. Several agro-based industries were established at Tumatumari during the tenure of the GNS. These industries included a pencil factory, a match factory and a tooth-pick factory. Power for the industries was provided by the Tumatumari

hydro-electric power station Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

which was established in 1957. People were not allowed to live around the GNS Centre. The availability of electricity resulted in the establishment of several villages around the area. The Amerindians settled in

El Paso El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...

, Micobie and

Tumatumari Landing Tumatumari Landing is a small community in the Potaro-Siparuni Region of Guyana, across the Potaro River from Tumatumari, near the Konawaruk Road, and to the east of El Paso El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso Coun ...

became a little hamlet. The total population grew to approximately 450 and electrical appliances were purchased for several homes. The hydro-power station ceased operations in the late 1980s, and the factories and industries consequently ceased operations. A number of the residents moved from the area. The area is now totally dependent on mining. The population as of 2012 is 86 persons.

References

{{Settlements in Guyana Populated places in Potaro-Siparuni