Last Updated on Sunday, 9 March 2025, 0:37 by Writer
President Irfaan Ali announced that a system was being put in place for mothers to receive the GY$100,00 cash grant within one week of giving birth before they leave hospital.
He told mothers at the launch of the initiative that officials of the Ministry of Finance and Regional Health Officers would be collaborating to ensure the cheques are available.
The President so far, 2,052 babies were born between January and February.
Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce told the mothers and other family members, who were present at the handing over ceremony at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown, that the cash grant to mothers of newborn babies as of January 1, 2025, had nothing to do with Guyana earning money from crude oil production.
“This is not a ‘because we have oil now’ initiative,” she said at the event that was held to coincide with the global observance of International Women’s Day.
Ms Oneidge Walrond said the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC)-led administration’s “philosophy and ethos” is one of supporting Guyanese, singling out the cash grant to school-aged children long before oil was discovered. Guyana currently produces about 650,000 barrels of crude per day. “We look after the citizens of our country…Every citizen of our country must benefit,” the minister said.
Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony said the cash grant for newborns is one of the latest investments to the benefit of newborns and mothers. He singled out the establishment of “waiting homes” in a number of remote regions for expectant mothers to go and await labour before they are taken to hospitals for safe delivery. Dr Anthony said that initiative has contributed to a “significant drop” in the number of maternal deaths. Primary health care facilities, he said, were now being equipped to test mothers to determine high-risk pregnancies which would require special attention for safe delivery. The Health Minister said all regional hospitals were now equipped to offer neonatal services, ending years of dependency on the neonatal facilities at the Georgetown Public Hospital.
He urged Guyanese not to see the cash grant as an expense but an investment in the babies’ future and their ability to contribute meaningfully to Guyana. “By providing the support, we are not merely spending resources. We’re planting seeds for our future where every child has the tools to grow, succeed and lead. This is not a burden on today’s taxpayers. It is a commitment to tomorrow’s leaders and nation builders. Let us refrain from considering this as an expense or as a burden,” he said.
Meanwhile, a number of opposition A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) parliamentarians vented their concerns about the fact that mothers were made to line up for the financial assistance.
