– as the rollout of the programme continues.

YESTERDAY the initiative was taken to Region 3 (Essequibo Islands/ West Demerara) and hundreds of parents and guardians turned out to the Uitvlugt Community ground to uplift their vouchers. The Guyana Chronicle caught up with several beneficiaries, all of whom lauded the Government for its vision to support parents and guardians to ensure that their children have access to education.

Vickram Hansraj from Cornelia Ida, told this newspaper that the Government has done a good thing by making additional support possible for parents. “It is a good thing. Sometimes you short, so it’s good to have the extra money.”
One grandparent, Isha Ramsarran, from Leonora, said many time her grandchild comes home with assignments and there is an immediate need for cash. “Sometimes you don’t have it then, but now we have

a extra something to help with the expense,” she said.
A Den Amstel resident, Keywanne Bacchus, in expressing her gratitude for the additional financial support, said, “It is a good thing because is not always you have all the money. It’s not a whole big set of money, but it’s something and you have to be thankful.”

Mahima Dindayal, from Cornelia Ida, reiterated similar sentiments. “A lot of time you have to buy more books and things like that for your children and you don’t always have all the money, so it is a good thing.”

Anansa Marcus, from Hague, who collected three vouchers totalling $30,000, was all praises for the initiative. “For me the big thing is transportation. Sometimes you find you spend as much as $5,000 in one week. So this is a huge help,” she said.
One father, Faizal Mohammed, from Windsor Forest, said additional books that his children may need and other school supplies sometimes run up the cost of sending children to school. “It a good help. There are things you don’t always plan for, so the

additional money is good. It a good programme.”

Uitvlugt resident, Sebastion Khemraj, told this newspaper he is grateful for the support that has been made possible by the Government of Guyana. “Things

you always need like books and footwear is something you have to spend on. The money is a big help, it come in to help the family.”
Naresh Bechulil, from Hague, although a man of few words, said, “I am grateful for the help. It will be used mostly for books.”

Another father, Alvin Chetram, from Leonora, explained that the cash grant will come in handy for expenditure on books his child needs. “Mostly it’s for books and it is expensive sometime, so the help the Government give is a good thing.”
Andrew Ally, from Hague, told the Guyana Chronicle that as a single parent, any additional support is a form of help he will welcome. “It is a good thing

the Government is doing. For single parent like me it is not always easy. Is a good thing,” he said.
Tiffany Samuels, from Cornelia Ida, who uplifted the vouchers for her two siblings, said, “It is a good programme to help families.”

Chitra Persaud, from La Grange, told the Guyana Chronicle that schooling is expensive sometimes,

particularly when a family has more than one child. “It’s not always easy, so the help is a good thing. I am thankful,” she said.

MAahendra Sundar, who resides at La Parfaite-Harmonie, a new housing scheme on the West Bank of Demerara, pointed to transportation as one of the bigger costs in schooling his children. “The Government did a good thing to help the people,” he said.

Marlyn Neblett, from La Jalousie, has three children, and according to her, new

school uniforms, books and other supplies are on her shopping list. “I am grateful. It is good that the Government helping the people,” she said.

The Government of Guyana’s ‘Because We Care’ $10,000 Cash grant initiative was announced by the Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, earlier this year, as a support measure for the Guyanese people, which was included in the 2014 Budget.
Additionally, Guyana is the only country in the Caribbean that has such a support programme, with a ‘no-condition’ policy applied to it.

The roll out of Government’s ‘Because We Care’ $10,000 Cash grant initiative continues across the country, until November 21.

(Interviews and photos by Vanessa Narine)