Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for public affairs Kwame Mc Coy speaking to Mocha Parents
Some 431 Mocha Arcadia, East Bank Demerara students have received cash grants, a positive initiative by the government.
This information was provided by member of the Mocha Arcadia School’s Welfare department, Eulita Browne.
Cash grants were delivered to parents of students who attend Mocha Arcadia Nursery, Mocha Arcadia Primary, and the Children Are Us Nursery Private School.
Speaking at the distribution of the cash grants on Tuesday, Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Public Affairs, Kwame McCoy said, “It was said that the monies allocated towards the grant of our children were actually a waste of taxpayers’ money. The previous administration deemed it a waste of taxpayers’ money. However, we did say in the 2020 campaign that this was one of the programs that we were going to revive and bring back on stream, and we would rather it be a waste of taxpayers’ money on our children.”
McCoy noted that the distribution of the cash grants continues due to the unwavering commitment of the government to ensure that students are well equipped with their essentials, better off than previous students who faced unprecedented situations when they had to go to school.
A Parent from Mocha Arcadia receiving her cash grant from Minister Kwame Mc Coy
“For us, our children remain very important, and as we try to educate them and prepare them for the future, we want our children to be better off than we were. Our manifesto commits to increasing it annually to the point where it reaches $50,000 within the first five years of government.”
Meanwhile, he emphasised the relief this grant provides to parents, revealing that parents are now in a position where they don’t have to bear the brunt of paying for so many items for their kids.
“And here we are with a grant that is now $45,000, a grant that eases the sacrifices of our parents who ensure their children are at school. One of the objectives is to use this grant to keep our children in school and assist in whatever way possible.”
He added that one of the great things about this grant is that, it is just the beginning of the type of grant aimed at helping parents keep their children in school.
The minister further drew attention to the collective effort required from parents, teachers, and the government for the betterment of the nation’s youths.
“All of us have our role to play in children’s education. I want to thank the teachers, and I’m happy that you’re back in the classroom, continuing your contribution to nurturing our children and ensuring they can become the best they desire to be, be it a lawyer, doctor, teacher, or anything they wish for themselves.
This will come true through our partnership as teachers, parents, and government, working together to make our children champions and stars of the future.”
On this note, he mentioned that he hopes parents take their roles very seriously and recognise that they should not entertain, support, or embrace politics that disrupt their children’s education.
“We should not allow our young ones to suffer due to political maneuverings and tactics by the unions or any other organisation or individual that may want to play politics with our children’s education. Our children are too precious to be subjected to such harm and danger,” he told the gathering of Mocha parents.
In 2021, the Government reintroduced the cash grant distribution for school-aged children, as per its manifesto promise. The distributions at that time saw each child benefitting from $19,000— $15,000 from the “Because We Care” grant and $4000 from their uniform vouchers.
In 2022, the Government increased the “Because We Care” cash grant amount from $15,000 to $25,000, and the uniform voucher from $4000 to $5000. This meant that each child went from receiving $19,000, to $30,000. It was also opened to all private school students as well.
In 2023, cash grants saw children registered in nursery, primary, and secondary public and private schools receiving a $35,000 grant, together with $5000 for school uniforms and other supplies.
This year, the cash grant was increased to $40,000, coupled with the $5,000 uniform allowance and will benefit 205,000 children countrywide.
