By Theresa Goodwin
It is anticipated that many more residents, to include the elderly and others who are currently unemployed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, will benefit from the government’s food voucher programme established in March.
The programme, which is administered by the Ministry of Social Transformation and Blue Economy, received a $15,000 injection yesterday from CIBC First Caribbean International Bank.
The bank’s director of retail sales for the OECS and the Eastern Caribbean, Ladessa James-Williams, said about 1,000 people will benefit from the donation.
“We want to also reaffirm our commitment that CIBC First Caribbean International Bank is here for Antigua and Barbuda and we will certainly be looking at other ways that we can provide some assistance,” James-Williams said during a brief ceremony on Tuesday.
Newly appointed Minister of Social Transformation and the Blue Economy, Dean Jonas, added that the donation would go a long way towards enhancing the food voucher programme.
“Hundreds of vulnerable people across Antigua and Barbuda benefit from this programme. It is designed to ensure the elderly, single mothers and children are able to provide food for their families. We do have many officers who do their research to ensure that those people can live well even during this Covid-19 crisis,” Jonas said.
Recently the financial institutional also donated $45,000 to Mount St John’s Medical Centre to purchase two machines that will boost the country’s response to Covid-19.