Arakaka is a community in the Barima-Waini

Barima-Waini

Barima-Waini is a region of Essequibo, Guyana, a territory in dispute by Guyana and Venezuela, located in the northwest of the country. It covers an area of 20,339 km²...

 region of Guyana

Guyana

Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...

, standing on the Barima River

Barima River

The Barima River is a tributary of the Orinoco River, entering 4 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. It originates in Guyana, flowing for approximately 210 miles before entering Venezuela about 50 miles from its mouth....

 and 12 miles southerly of Port Kaituma

Port Kaituma

Port Kaituma is a small town within the Barima-Waini administrative region of Guyana, located at .- History :Although an Amerindian settlement has existed along the Kaituma River for some time, it was only after the discovery of manganese at nearby Matthew's Ridge that Port Kaituma was developed...

, at an altitude of 63 metres (209 feet). It is the centre of the gold-bearing district, featuring lateritic-saprolitic deposits.

The population of Arakaka varies according to the amount of mineral extraction in the region. Launches formerly ascended the river regularly to Arakaka, where a mining warden was stationed.