The Social Protection Board, a government agency that provides services as part of the social safety net, will be distributing back-to-school supplies to the less fortunate in the society starting today.
Operations Manager, Mary Baltimore told Point Express the distribution will take place at the Rising Sun Ground where she anticipates that between 300 to 400 persons will benefit from the programme over the next two days.
“This is a programme that we undertake every year and I have a number of partners in the society, mainly businesses operating in the country, who provide the supplies that we distribute to those in need. We are targeting those at the lower rung of the economic ladder who face challenges meeting the costs involved in providing supplies to their school-age children,” she explained.
Parents of these children will receive school bags filled with supplies including pens, pencils, books and other things required by children to function in school. Additionally, some parents will also receive shoes for their children. However, the distribution of shoes comes with a proviso; parents seeking these items must be accompanied by their children.
“What we don’t want is to give parents shoes for their children that don’t fit, when these items can go to other children in need,” Baltimore noted.
The Social Protection Board, formerly the Board of Guardians, currently caters to the need of the vulnerable persons in the society. According to the operations manager, every month it distributes thousands of food vouchers to the indigent.
Among its services, is the care of persons who are victims of fires who are left homeless and often without clothes and who require urgent assistance from the state. While not managed by the Social Protection Board, the HAPI Programme and the Soup Kitchen, operated by Inspector Veldon Raggette, are two programmes affiliated with its operations.
The board also provides similar services to people on Barbuda.
