Government reminds participants in BOOST program of responsibilities to remain on social support

Published by BBNTEAM at January 25, 2024

Posted: Thursday, January 25, 2024. 9:48 pm CST.

By Aaron Humes: Following the announcement of Government’s commitment to continue the conditional cash transfer program Building Opportunities for Our Social Transformation (BOOST), Minister of Human Development, Families and Indigenous People’s Affairs Dolores Balderamos-Garcia reminded that there are what she called “co-responsibilities” for its participants.

As she explained to reporters this afternoon, “…we [must] remember that there are criteria to qualify for the BOOST. And then if your economic circumstances get better then you can graduate out of it. Because BOOST is really meant to protect the most vulnerable and the poorest in our community. Now, we were reminded in Cabinet that the poverty assessments have been done over the years and the poverty assessment for 2018 is different from the one that will come out for 2022. Now if it shows less multidimensional poverty in 2022 that doesn’t mean that we’ll close the boost because we will still have elderly and vulnerable people and people with disabilities. So we only gave an update and a review to Cabinet and government and Cabinet has agreed that we will continue the program.”

Participants being assessed agree to commitments based on their family structure. Families with school-age children are mandated to at least 85 percent yearly attendance; children must receive all their childhood vaccinations and in the case of pregnant mothers, attend pre-natal checkups. Once all the boxes have been ticked, the $44 per month assistance is paid out, something the Minister said would be revisited.

Now approaching its 15th anniversary, Balderamos-Garcia said it had long stopped being an election gimmick and was subject to review based on the Government’s plans.

In the long term, she pointed out, the Government wants as many people employed as possible, including working mothers, though issues of childcare remain a concern: “Let’s look at the poverty level. Let’s look at how many women we have in employment and we all know that there are less women in employment because it’s women who have to mind the children. Now we want to get more women into the workforce but then when you get more women into the workforce what’s the next question – who will mind the children, you see? So these are larger social issues, larger social protection issues, but as a government, we are absolutely committed to our Plan Belize and to the social protection that we have pledged to do going forward. And I want to assure you once again, no election gimmick.”

GOB says the program, started during the tenure of Anthony “Boots” Martinez, is an important pillar of Social Protection for the neediest Belizeans, including the elderly and persons with disabilities.

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