168,000 Children to Benefit from PATH

Minister of State in the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Senator Floyd Morris, has said that some 168,000 children aged between zero and 17 years will benefit from the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), by the end of the financial year.
He said the Programme has been expanded to incorporate more children by moving the beneficiary age group for the programme from 0 – 6 years to 0 – 17 years.
“We have widened the age cohort of those children who would benefit under the programme. So we are moving from 0-6 to 0-17 years, which constitutes a fundamental policy shift on the part of the Government,” he pointed out.
Senator Morris was speaking at the handing over of 12 vans to Parish Managers at the Ministry in Kingston. The vehicles will be used in the implementation of the programme.
PATH is a programme funded by the Government of Jamaica and the World Bank and is aimed at delivering benefits by way of cash grants to the most needy persons in the society.
Under the Programme, children between six and 17 years must maintain an 85 per cent attendance record in each month to receive the benefit. This means that they must not be absent from school more than three times in any month.
Meanwhile, children under six years, pregnant and lactating women, the elderly, persons with disabilities and poor adults are required to visit the health centers as specified by the Ministry of Health.
Senator Morris also issued a strong warning that beneficiaries of the programme should adhere to these stipulations.
“All the beneficiaries under the programme have certain compliance mechanisms that they have to adhere to, and we are appealing to all the beneficiaries through the media to make sure they adhere to them. Make sure that those who are to attend health centres on a regular basis, do so, and also the children must attend school on a constant basis,” the State Minister said.
He pointed out that this was a contractual arrangement and if they failed to comply, they would be suspended from the programme. Turning to the service delivery of the programme, Senator Morris said that individuals would now be able to go to the post office and collect their envelopes with their cheques.
“That within itself is improving the dignity by which we treat the poor and the vulnerable within our society and that again is a significant policy decision that we have taken as a government,” the State Minister said. Currently, some 150,000 beneficiaries are enrolled with the Programme with full enrollment aimed at 236,000 by the end of the financial year.
Giving an update on the implementation of the Programme, Collette Roberts-Risden, Project Director of PATH said that “getting where we are has been a lot of work”.
She said that in the coming months there would be case management, and that in this aspect of the programme, beneficiaries would be monitored more closely to ensure that they complied with the rules of the programme. To qualify for the programme, persons must complete an application form with the help of a Ministry personnel. The application form asks for personal data about the applicant. Based on the information submitted, a decision is made as to whether a person qualifies to receive the benefit.
There are five broad categories of beneficiaries. These are children 0-17 years, the elderly, persons with disabilities, pregnant and lactating women, and other poor adults. Each beneficiary will receive $300 per month in the first year of the programme, $375 in the second year and $500 in the third year. Payments are made every two months.