“Because We Care” cash grant distribution starts on Monday

…rollout begins in Regions 7, 9

The distribution of the “Because We Care” cash grant to public and private school students will commence on Monday, beginning with Regions Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) then followed by Regions Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) and Five (Mahaica-Berbice).
This announcement was made by Education Minister Priya Manickchand on the sidelines of the inaugural Arrival Day village day event on Tuesday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) where she reiterated the eligibility criteria for the $55,000 grant.

“On the 12th of May, we will begin the distribution of the ‘Because We Care’ cash grant in Regions Nine and Seven, and the following week we begin in Regions Two and Five. Every other region will follow thereafter. So, I want you to remember what the eligibility criteria are: the child must be on the register that the school would have provided, which was verified by officers, and then the child will receive the cash grant,” the Minister told the media.
She also addressed concerns from individuals frequently inquiring about the availability of the “Because We Care” cash grant in their respective regions. She emphasised that the grant will be distributed to all regions across the country.
“I want to reemphasise that if you don’t see your region starting on Monday, I don’t want to see conversations such as ‘Oh gosh, when are they starting in my region?’ or ‘Is only dogs live here?’ I’ve seen those kinds of things. Because we have a schedule, you are going to get to every single child at the beginning of school. We are staggering this to be able to do it in an effective way. You have to take your own responsibility to see when it is coming to your region and where your child is going to be distributed.”
A total of $11 billion has been allocated in the 2025 budget to distribute this grant to 205,000 students.
In Budget 2023, the Government increased the ‘Because We Care’ cash grant by $10,000, moving it from $25,000 per child to $35,000.
Under the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Administration between 2015 and 2020, the ‘Because We Care’ cash grant—initially introduced by the previous People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Government—was discontinued for schoolchildren.