The DLP administration is gearing up to establish a fund where Dominicans resident abroad and CBI citizens as well as other good-meaning people can make donations. The fund will be used to assist the most vulnerable families and communities through the economic challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic, and to assure the monthly payments of stipends to senior citizens and pensioners for six months.
Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said the government alone cannot bear the shortage of economic revenue and displacements suffered by many people across Dominica on account of the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the government will only be able to sustain the masses during this trying period through the developmental cooperation financial commitments of Dominicans abroad, including CBI citizens and agents.
“As part of the shared responsibility concept to face the challenges of COVID-19, the government of Dominica will establish a fund to allow Dominican citizens resident overseas, including our new citizens and CBI agents, to make a tangible contribution to the current socio-economic challenges caused by COVID-19,” he said.
The prime minister said the fund will be managed by reputable members of the civil society to support vulnerable households and socio-economically disadvantaged folks in the community. He noted that it is the shared responsibility of everyone to look after one another at a time like this when coronavirus has practically altered everything in the country.
Meawhile, Dr. Clayton Shillingford, a veteran scientist and agricultural expert, has advised all knowledgeable Dominicans within and outside the island to cooperate with the government by coming up with workable ideas that will promote food security and economic independence during this COVID-19 pandemic. He said everyone must join hands with the government to contribute meaningfully to the resilience and growth of Dominica at a time like this.
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