by Kevon Browne
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): Three thousand, eight hundred and fourteen (3814) people have benefited from the food hampers and hot meals initiative out of the Ministry of Social Development and Gender affairs according to the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Janelle Lewis-Tafari.
“Since we commenced operations on 28th May, 3814 persons have benefited from the food hampers and hot meals; 346 households who have benefited were in quarantine, and several of these households received packages on more than one occasion due to the length of time of their quarantine period. Another 890 households had members who had either lost their jobs or had reduced income because of the pandemic or the lockdown period.”
During the press briefing hosted by the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) on July 7, 2021, Lewis-Tafari announced an additional 50 vouchers were added to the original 1,250 food vouchers worth EC$200 each. The vouchers were a donation made by the Saint Christopher and Nevis Social Security Board and are redeemable at RAMs Supermarket and Horsford’s Valu Mart.
The vouchers will be split 80/20 between St. Kitts and Nevis; 1,040 for St. Kitts and 260 for Nevis.
“A total of 720 names have already been submitted for the voucher programme. The names [were] forwarded by the NEMA district management teams and we expect that these vouchers will be delivered from the Social Security Board by tomorrow (Thursday, July 8). So distribution will commence shortly.”
Lewis-Tafari, also asked those who signed up to receive assistance to have their phone on hand, as contact with recipients has been a challenge in transporting the aid.
Anyone in need of assistance and individuals willing to contribute are asked to telephone 662-5539, 662-7710, 662-6473 or 662-5993.
