President Irfaan Ali, today, distributed over 800 hampers to families and vulnerable groups in several communities in East Berbice-Corentyne (Region Six) to bring relief to those experiencing challenges due to the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Persons in communities such as Canefield, Adelphi, Gangaram, Betsy Ground, Goed Banenen Land and Reliance benefited from the hampers which contain a month’s supply of foodstuff and hygiene items.
“We are grateful to be here and to address you. We are also happy to visit these communities once again. We would also like to assure you that we have started to fulfil our promises and we intend to work with your communities to ensure that we remain connected. This is our continuous approach to understanding the issues that are affecting you,” President Ali said.
The Head of State emphasised that the outreaches are critical to the Government’s drive to ensure that issues are addressed from the community level. He also assured that the engagement is the first of many to follow, which will be designed to tackle issues head-on, once the threat of COVID-19 disease has dissipated.
The President said provisions will be made in the upcoming Emergency Budget as well as the main Budget early next year, when issues will be addressed in a more comprehensive manner.
The Head of State also alluded to additional stimulus initiatives and a $5 billion-dollar injection to bring much needed relief to households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This injection, he said, is as a direct result of the sale of Treasury Bills.
President Ali expressed gratitude to members of the Private Sector, the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), religious organisations and other stakeholders for supporting the relief exercise.
“It is with the support of our partners that we are able to do this as we understand your hardships. We are here to support the development aspirations of all of the communities,” the President said.
