Two thousand, three hundred and fifty-seven ( 2, 357) frontline and other workers are expected to receive a $500 honorarium from the government.
Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves made the announcement last week.
“A decision was expected to be made at cabinet on the final number of persons to benefit from the honorarium. The former list was confusing to me; the new one will see 604 persons who volunteered at NEMO and in shelters receiving an honorarium”.
Other categories of workers who stand to benefit from the pay-out includes;
Police
Nurses
Teachers
Civil Servants
Prison Officers
On calls from the PSU for all civil servants to receive an honorarium, Gonsalves said persons still have to remember that we are still in a pandemic and recovering post volcanic eruptions.
“While nobody wants to begrudged everybody getting something additional, they have to understand that the nation is battling COVID and still recovering from the volcanic eruption”.
The World Bank Board of Executive Directors in late November approved US$40 million for the Volcanic Eruption Emergency Project in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
The project is also financed by a US$2 million grant from the European Union’s Caribbean Regional Resilience Building Facility, managed by the World Bank’s Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery.
In April 2021, the La Soufrière volcano experienced explosive eruptions that damaged critical services, infrastructure, and agriculture.
“The people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines have endured the twin shocks of the volcanic eruption and COVID-19.
The project will help the country build back better while taking into account its vulnerability to natural disasters and the growing threat of climate change,” said Lilia Burunciuc, World Bank Country Director for Caribbean Countries.
