The Human Services Ministry recently distributed 4,000 uniform vouchers to needy students across Region Six as it continues its school uniform assistance programme.

According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) press release, schools were asked to select 10% of their neediest students for assistance. The numbers were then sent to the ministry. The distribution will cover 18% of the current school population and represents 100% of students in the riverain communities and 10% of those on the coastland.

In Region Six cluster meetings for distribution were held at 10 different schools in an effort to cover distribution for the entire region. The schools are the Skeldon Line Path Secondary, Tagore Memorial Secondary School, Central Corentyne High, Berbice High and Auchlyne, Mibicuri, Rose Hall, Cumberland, Edinburgh and the Number 48 Primary.

In distributing the vouchers, Minister Priya Manickchand told parents and guardians, “the only sure way for your children to have a better life is to send them to school.” She urged them to send their children to school as an education is the only way of ensuring that they do not face the same hardships as their parents.

Government is also working to ensure that every home is computer and internet ready and to achieve this telephone lines are being installed in every community, GINA said.

Additionally, GINA said the stores that have been selected to redeem the vouchers which are each worth $1500, are those that responded to advertisements placed in the media. These vouchers are only redeemable for school related items and cannot be used for any other purposes.

According to GINA government has allocated $55 millionfor the programme this year. More than 36,000 needy students are expected to benefit.