Despite rising cost-of-living pressures, there has not been a notable increase in Barbadians seeking financial or welfare assistance, according to Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Kirk Humphrey.
Humphrey shared this observation during a recent event where Chickmont Foods Ltd donated $10,000 worth of food vouchers to the ministry’s One Family Programme.
The minister noted “We have not really seen an increase in terms of the number of people who came forward over the last few years,” he said. “We’ve gone through the numbers, we were in estimates last week budgeting, and we were looking at demand this year as compared to demand last year. We have not seen an increase in numbers.
He explained, “What we have done over the year is that we have gone forward – what we decided since the back-to-school programme, is that there were a number of persons who come every year, people who are known to the departments, we set up a greenlight situation where a person who is known to the ministry or known to welfare, they get their support upfront. So it reduces the level of pressure.”
Humphrey however praised the contribution of corporate Barbados towards the ministry’s efforts to help support he less fortunate. He said: “Every Christmas we see a number of new entities [coming] forward, a number of small organisations who are also helping [to ease] the pressure at that level. Through the One Family we’ve seen significant support from Light and Power, Chickmont now, Sandy Lane Trust, JetBlue… a number of persons have come forward to help us carry the burden.”
