Kabalebo is a resort in Suriname, located in the

Sipaliwini District Sipaliwini is the largest district of Suriname, located in the south. Sipaliwini is the only district that does not have a regional capital, as it is directly administered by the national government in Paramaribo. History Sipaliwini was created ...

. Its population at the 2012 census was 2,291.

Geography

Kabalebo is a resort in Suriname named after the Kabalebo River that flows through this area. Clockwise, the Kabalebo resort borders the Upper

Coppename River The Coppename is a river in Suriname (South America) in the district of Sipaliwini, forming part of the boundary between the districts of Coronie and Saramacca. Course The Coppename river begins in the Wilhelmina Mountains. Its tributaries ar ...

and resort to the East, it's adjacent to the

Coeroeni River The Coeroeni River is a river in South America. It arises in the Tumuc-Humac Mountains, which forms the drainage divide between Pará, Brazil, and Suriname; from there it flows northward. The river is fed by the Aramatau, Kutari and Sipaliwini R ...

and resort in the South, bordered in the North across the Courantyne River to Guyana and also to Nickerie. Kabalebo is an area around the river Kabalebo and it was formerly in the district of Nickerie, but since the re-organisation of the districts it lies in district Sipaliwini. The residents are mainly native Indians, the original inhabitants of Suriname. The major tribes are

Arawak The Arawak are a group of indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. Specifically, the term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to the Lokono of South America and the Taíno, who historically lived in the Great ...

s and Warao. The bigger villages in this resort are

Apoera Apoera, also Apura, is a town in western Suriname. The village has a population of 777 people as of 2020. It is the final destination of the Southern East-West Link. north-west on the other side of the Courantyne River lies the Guyanese villag ...

''(Apura)'',

Bakhuys Bakhuys (also: Bakhuis) is a village in the Kabalebo resort of the Sipaliwini District in Suriname. The village is located near the Bakhuis Mountains. Bakhuis is mainly known for its large bauxite mine which is exploited by Suralco. In 1995, t ...

''(Bakhuis)'', Section and Washabo ''(Wasjabo)''. Smaller villages include:

Lucie Lucie is the French and Czech form of the female name Lucia. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Lucie Ahl, British tennis player * Lucie Arnaz, American actress * Lucie Aubrac, member of the French Resistance * Lucie Balthaz ...

, Sandlanding, and Wanapan. Clinics and schools are located in Apura, and Washabo. Section is the smallest village and has a population of 116 who according to the chief are all related.

Economic Development

There is little economic activity in Kabalebo, although there have been attempts in the past to change this. There is the bauxite mine in the Bakhuis mountain range with the corresponding (never used and in the meantime declining) railway line to

, and during the reign of president

Henck Arron Henck Alphonsus Eugène Arron (25 April 1936 – 4 December 2000) was the first Prime Minister of Suriname after it gained independence in 1975. A member of the National Party of Suriname, he served from 24 December 1973 with the transition gover ...

(1975-1980), there were plans, part of the

West Suriname Plan The ''West Suriname Plan'' was an economic development plan for the western part of Suriname. As originally conceived, it consists among others of the mining of bauxite in the Bakhuis Mountains, the building of a hydroelectric power plant on the ...

, to build a dam in Kabalebo for power generation for the benefit of the mining activities. The construction of the reservoir is still considered. A project of permanent agriculture is under way with 100

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...

s of American taro, 80 hectares of cassave and 3 hectares of cashew tree.

Tourist Activity

In the Midwest of Suriname, in the middle of the Amazon rain-forest, a jungle-accommodation has been built; the Kabalebo Nature Resort. Kabalebo is also called a bird watching paradise for bird watchers in the jungle. The Kabalebo Airstrip (ICAO: SMKA), was constructed as part of Operation Grasshopper.

References

{{coord, 4, 26, 20, N, 57, 11, 14, W, source:kolossus-itwiki, display=title Resorts of Suriname Populated places in Sipaliwini District