By Admin. Updated 4:11 p.m. Thursday, January 7, 2021, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
Kingstown, St. Vincent (ONE NEWS SVG) – Over 8.4 million Eastern Caribbean Dollars was paid out in the form of COVID-19 benefits to Vincentians from April 10, to December 26, 2020 – a nine-month period.
Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said Wednesday on NBC Radio that the monies were paid out under two programs – the Temporary Unemployment Benefits Program paid by the NIS, and the Government-financed program for the hospitality sector and the government finance program for seafarers.
Dr. Gonsalves said the figure excludes the almost 5,000 farmers who received payments of 500 each on two occasions. It also does not include the payouts made to vendors, mini-bus operators and taxi operators.
He said there were 4,776 claimants but 4,309 claimants are the ones who satisfied the various criteria and in total, we paid 8.4 million dollars, 300 hundred dollars every month.
Under the NIS-financed Temporary Unemployment Benefits Program, 2.35 million dollars was paid out benefitting 1,354 persons.
He said that 1,761 persons benefited from the Government-financed program for the hotel workers and hospitality workers, in the tune of 4.178 million dollars
The prime minister added that 1,194 sailors benefited from 1.872 million dollars in payouts.
