-Dr. Singh emphasises, says $26.9B in cash grants distributed to schoolchildren since 2021
SENIOR Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance and the Public Service, Dr. Ashni Singh, has reiterated that the restoration and increase of government’s cash grant to schoolchildren initiative on the People’s Progressive Party/Civic’s (PPP/C) return to office, is the delivery of one of the promises made in the party’s 2020 Manifesto.
Dr. Singh stated this fact while delivering remarks at the launch of government’s 2024 ‘Because We Care’ Cash Grant initiative at Queen’s College, on Monday.
The Ministry of Finance in a statement reminded that the ‘Because We Care’ cash grant of $40,000 this year has been substantially increased from $15,000 in 2021 when its disbursement resumed. together with the uniform allowance of $5,000, this year’s grant to each child will amount to $45,000.
According to the statement, the minister noted that following the disbursement of the grants this year, government would have disbursed $9.2 billion for this year alone, while for the period 2021-2024, a total of $26.9 billion in the cash grants will have been disbursed to school children under the programme.
The minister further explained that government has been placing the highest level of priority in ensuring that the young people of Guyana realise their full potential. Thus, he pointed out that this it is why the education sector has been allocated the largest sums in government’s budgets over the years. This year, the sector’s allocation has increased significantly from $52.8 billion in 2019 to $135.2 billion to further realise the government’s vision of world class education.
The parents of every child registered in nursery, primary and secondary schools across the country are expected to receive the ‘Because We Care’ grant, which is disbursed to school children attending both public and private schools.
While addressing parents and teachers at the launch, Dr. Singh used the opportunity to highlight that this era is the most exciting time to be young in Guyana, noting that in this new Guyana, the rate at which the economy is growing, there are incredible new opportunities arising in every single sector of the country.
“Young people irrespective of what their interest is, irrespective of what they want to study (in this new Guyana) or what career they wish to pursue ,opportunities are limitless,” Dr. Singh told parents and teachers, as he alluded to the large number of training and job-creation opportunities government has been providing in various sectors, as well as the recent second Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) graduation ceremony where over 1,700 young people graduated, while over 7,700 more persons have been awarded scholarships to study in various fields.
The statement added that it would be recalled that in 2014, government’s cash grant initiative to school children totalled $10,000 per child.
“This initiative was callously removed when the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) assumed office in 2015,” the statement said.
