THE National Assembly, through the Committee of Supply on Thursday approved a supplemental provision of $156M for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; $40M of which will be sent to Haiti and The Bahamas to assist with hurricane relief efforts.In early October, hurricane Matthew, described as the fiercest storm in the Caribbean in nearly a decade, lashed Haiti with 230 kilometres an hour winds and torrential rains. Subsequently, the French-speaking country was faced with a cholera outbreak as a result of contaminated water and lack of hygiene. The death toll climbed to over 1100 as of mid-October.

Unfortunately, The Bahamas was not spared, as its capital – Nassau – found itself directly in the destructive path of the hurricane. Having been severely affected, the economies of the two countries – one of which is considered the poorest in the western hemisphere – have been crippled, perhaps temporarily.

And according to Foreign Affairs Minister, Carl Greenidge, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), in looking at the plight of Haiti and The Bahamas, recommended that contributions be made in packages of either US$100,000, US$200,000 or US$300,000.

Both affected countries are members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). As such, he noted that Guyana will be donating US$100,000 (or $20M) to each country, as opposed to $10.5M, which was initially proposed in the National Assembly.

The approval of this sum went unopposed in the House and Opposition Member Gail Teixeira sought to register her party’s support for assistance to the two Caribbean countries.

However, despite their support, Opposition MP, Nigel Dharamlall questioned whether the payment will be made in parts or as a one-off payment, to which the minister said the former.

He noted too that while the payment has not been made as yet, if it is realised that enough has not been provided, countries will then decide on making another donation at the appropriate time.

The Foreign Minister opined though that, “one payment will undoubtedly not be sufficient” adding that “there will remain the need for additional amounts.”