Although government has announced that it will provide COVID-19 assistance for vulnerable persons and a data collection system is being established, neither the Ministry of Finance nor the executing agency, the Ministry of Social Protection are saying how the programme will be funded.
Given the government’s current caretaker status as the country awaits the recount of votes from the March 2 polls, and with no budget yet for the 2020 fiscal year, it is unclear what process it will use to access funds from the Consolidated Fund.
Through an announcement by government’s COVID-19 Task Force, persons affected by the disease have been asked to submit applications to get support.
“The government of Guyana will be assisting the most vulnerable,” a notice posted on the websites of the Ministry of Social Protection, the Ministry of Finance and the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) states.
It says those eligible to apply for this assistance include those currently benefitting from Public Assistance provided by the Ministry of Social Protection (MoSP); persons who applied for Public Assistance and are awaiting a response from MoSP; persons who suffered a loss of income due to COVID-19; and households headed by senior citizens or persons with disabilities.
Interested persons are asked to complete a data analysis form on the MoSP’s website.
“You are invited to complete this vulnerability assessment tool developed by the Government of Co-operative Republic of Guyana to collect information on the impact of COVID-19 on households across the country,” the application form states.
“This is a joint effort by the Ministries of Communities, Finance and Social Protection as well as the Civil Defence Commission and the National Data Management Authority. The data provided on this form will be accessible ONLY to authorised officials at these agencies and will only be used to inform the provision of aid to affected vulnerable households,” it adds.
But when the Stabroek News contacted the Ministry of Finance to query about financing of the programme, it was referred to the Ministry of Social Protection. “Please direct your questions to the Ministry of Social Protection,” Ministry of Finance spokesperson Wanita Huburn said.
Minister of Social Protection Amna Ally was then contacted and while she admitted there was a programme she referred this newspaper to head of the Civil Defence Commission Colonel Kester Craig and Director of Social Services Whentworth Tanner.
Craig was then called but he said he could not understand why he was referred to speak with the press when his agency would just facilitate the process and he, too, referred the reporter to Tanner.
When Tanner was contacted after 2pm, he said that he was in a meeting and should be called back in an hour. He was called back at the time requested and several other times but up to press time the calls to his mobile number were not answered.
Meanwhile, the data assessment form can be submitted either through an online portal or manually. If persons have already submitted information to the CDC or MoSP for COVID-19 Public Assistance they should not complete the form again but make contact with the respective agencies for further information, the agencies have advised.
The MoSP assures that there are no known risks associated with completing the assessment and that the information collected has significant potential benefits for determining the most appropriate forms of relief for households across the country.
It said that the information provided on the form “may be relevant for designing other national policies as part of the COVID-19 response.”
The application forms can be downloaded from the Ministry of Social Protection’s website at https://mosp.gov.gy/ or directly https://government.gy/eform/241.
