Government Information Service

By Emmanuel Joseph
Government Information Service

On Monday, June 22, 2009 the Government of Dominica through the Ministry of Community Development, Culture, Gender Affairs and Information launched the much publicised ‘Yes We Care Programme’, a brainchild of the Hon. Prime Minister and Minister for Finance and National Security, Roosevelt Skerrit. The ceremony, which was carried live via D.B.S Radio and Kairi FM was attended by members of Cabinet, senior public officers, members of the diplomatic corps, representatives of non-government and private partnering agencies, took place at the Dominica State House on Victoria Street.

Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Community Development, Ruth Allport, told the elderly folk gathered at the launching ceremony that with the increase projection of older people at the center of the world stage, policies need to be put in place so as to address the negative connotations levelled at the elderly and physically challenged She declared that the persons targeted by the Yes We Care Programme are deserving of such attention.

“...Policy makers and advisors and civil society at large are being sensitised into revising the negative connotations traditionally ascribed to ageing; particularly as you, senior citizens are carving out a more active role for yourselves in society. You are a symbol of a whole generation, a generation that has laid the foundations for this programme. After years of hard work and commitment to family, community and country, you are deserving of the respect and special care and attention the Yes We Care Programme will provide for you.”

The Yes We Care Programme is a new initiative by the Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica which is being implemented by the Ministry of Community Development in collaboration with non-government and charitable organisations. The Government recognises that there are a number of elderly persons in Dominica who are in dire need of care and attention because either the family members have migrated or family members are unable to provide for their elderly relatives because of sickness, poverty or unemployment. The programme seeks to assist family members in the provision of personal care to approximately three hundred (300) elderly persons in the seven (7) health districts in Dominica. Funding for the programme comes from a one million dollars (XCD$1 000 000.00) grant from the Government of Libya.  

President of the Dominica Council on Ageing, Evander Joseph, congratulated Government for implementation of such a programme. He stated that the launching ceremony is a monumental achievement worthy of historical significance and explained why he felt so.

“Today’s ceremony will mark a fundamental achievement worthy to be written down as first of its kind in the annals of Dominica. Personally, I am elated at the establishment of this programme as it brings new hope, not only for the already well established Dominica Council on Ageing and its affiliates, but more so, to our older persons and to ensure a better quality of life for the older persons in Dominica.”

Mr. Joseph expressed hope that the Dominica populace would embrace and appreciate the programme as there are indeed persons who live alone and really need the care which is essential for elongated life and to restore their dignity. He lamented the fact that at times, it is sad to know that elderly persons are left by some relative to institutions such as the Dominica Infirmary. These relatives falsely think that these institutions have the duty and right to care for that loved one. He went on to laud those who have given their heart to assisting their relatives in need.

“Though there is slowly creeping the need to become ‘Americanised’ and disregard our older persons in the process or just abandoning them for whatever reason or reasons, we have to admit that there are quite a number of individuals and families who are for their older persons at heart. Hearts off to those persons, but there undoubtedly exists a need for that type of service offered by the Yes We Care Programme.”

The Honourable Minister for Community Development, Culture, Gender Affairs and Information, Loreen Bannis-Roberts, told the listening audience that the programme is the equivalent of answering the Heavenly Father’s plea to provide food for the hungry, clothing for the naked and drink to the thirsty. She said it is doing little but essential things to preserve and protect the dignity of our people. However, the Hon. Minister noted that it can be a challenge to provide care for the less fortunate, nonetheless, that should not stop us from reaching out.

“There are various reasons why sometimes, it can be a challenge to provide care to the less fortunate in our communities. For example, we live in towns and villages. Most of us come from what may be described as the extended family. It includes not just the mother and father, but uncles, cousins, often many other relatives. Historically, this created a sense of togetherness and led to an approach that the community was responsible for the individual. So as people got older, or if they became challenged somehow, it was the normal practice for those who were better off to look after those who were not able. Some of our people have gone abroad and are no longer available to provide the care that would have been provided if they were on the spot. Others have moved to other parts of the country and are not in the extended family circle anymore. Hence, are not there to provide the support which would have come from within the community.”

The Minister said that despite this, Dominica has many persons who are disabled and many others who need care for various reasons and are not getting it. In addition to this, there is the fact that people are living longer here in Dominica. It is why Dominica can boast of having the highest number of centenarians per capita in the world and we are known as the Isle of longetivity. This means that there will be comparatively more people who, as they get older, will require care and attention and therefore we have to organise and provide for them.
Minister Bannis-Roberts stated the Yes We Care Programme can be seen as a social safety net for good reason aimed at aiding the older persons who formed part of what we are today.

“We have to remember always that whatever development has taken place in this country over the years, the sweat and hard work of the older generation had, to some extent, been responsible for that. Accordingly, the Yes We Care Programme can be considered a social safety net aimed at ensuring that all those who, by virtue of poverty or exclusion or natural disaster, cannot provide for themselves must have a source from which they are guaranteed the care and attention that they need or deserve as human beings.”

During the financial year 2008/2009, approximately three thousand (3000) families and individuals received financial assistance under the Public Assistance Programme of the Welfare Division. The 5.2 million dollars (XCD$5 200 000.00) spent represents a sixty percent (60%) increase over the same period in 2007/2008.

Minister Bannis-Roberts said in so doing, Government has honoured its commitment to provide a fifty percent (50%) increase in its public assistance contribution. In addition, Government makes a monthly contribution of five hundred dollars (XCD$500.00) to every centenarian on the island and provides over one million dollars (XCD$1 000 000.00) annually as grants to institutions which partner with the Government in providing care and support for needy persons on the island.

She called on Dominicans to play their part as Government has led the way in so doing.

“Today, some people have the attitude that it is the Government’s job to provide food, shelter and clothing for the less fortunate. This view is incorrect. While the Government can assist, those of us who have the means must see it as our responsibility as well to provide the care and support that those in need require. This is what is meant by the term being our brother’s and sister’s keeper or corporate social responsibility.

The Government of this country have taken the lead in ensuring that marginalised and vulnerable citizens of this country are assisted and their quality of life is above minimum standard. We, in Government, are of the view that Government has a moral responsibility to help those who, for justifiable reasons, are unable to help themselves. I encourage my fellow Dominicans today to follow the example that we in Government are setting.”

The Minister also thanked the good corporate citizens, institutions and individuals who function as their brother’s and sister’s keeper.

In his speech, the Hon. Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit said that this is a very special moment in the evolution of Dominica as the aims and intended impact of this "Yes We Care" initiative are most noble and worthy of praise. He went to say that the timing speaks volumes to our maturity as a society and to the focus of the government.

Prime Minister Skerrit noted that such an undertaking is a bold one as many countries, especially in this economic downturn are looking to cut costs especially in the social services sector.

“I think it says quite a lot about us as a people and about the focus of your government, when, in the midst of a global economic crisis, where nations large and small have had to rethink and refocus their developmental programmes, Dominica has forged ahead with a social initiative of this nature. This is the type of programme that would normally be among the first casualties of any economic belt tightening. There is no country in the Eastern Caribbean and I daresay the region that has launched a programme of this nature in the midst of an economic downturn, like that currently being experienced.

Social budgets across the world are being slashed to the point where the poor and most vulnerable are falling through the cracks. It would have been understandable for your government to have postponed the start up of this initiative in light of the economic challenges confronting the state. Even the targeted beneficiaries would have acceded to our request to postpone commencement until such time as we have turned the proverbial economic bend. This is an option that we confronted and it is one that we considered.”

Prime Minister Skerrit said that the Yes We Care Programme is about society giving back to those who help create the experience that we are experiencing today and that we need to embrace those who are least able to fend for and attend to themselves.

“The ‘Yes We Care Programme’ is about society giving back to those who created and maintained that which we experience and enjoy today. It is said that you know the true mettle of a society by the manner in which it treats or cares for its senior citizens. I agreed with Minister Bannis-Roberts and her team of care givers that notwithstanding the challenges we confront and the financial impact on our slender economic resources. Now is the best time to reach out and touch those who were severely impacted by the downturn in revenues and economic activity.”

The Prime Minister reiterated comments from Hon. Minister of Community Development that the senior citizens deserve such care as they formed an integral part of Dominica’s development and called on the caregivers to take care of the senior citizens. He, however, cautioned them to expect mishaps in the process as nothing is entirely perfect.

“In Dominica we are today launching a major social initiative that will bring help and relief to our most vulnerable. I wish to say this morning that I am happy for our senior folks. They deserve all the attention they are likely to get as a result of this initiative. They built this country and this country owes it to them to take care of them in their senior years when they are no longer physically able to do so for themselves.

The team of caregivers that will dispense this service has a major weight of responsibility on their shoulders. Not only must you execute your job to the best of your ability, but you must do so with love, warmth and humility. I want you to enjoy what you are doing. I want you to treat our seniors with dignity and pride. This is a pilot project and I expect that there will be teething problems, but I want you to remain focused on the overarching goal of extending love and affection to those in your charge.

By the same token, seniors must make provision for slip- ups and genuine errors. These Care Givers are well trained and eager to do well. But they are human and are subject to error and human failings. They too will slip-up from time to time but I am sure it will be in error.”

More on the Prime Minister’s speech can be found on the Government Information Service website.

The Yes We Care Programme is in keeping with the Government’s strategy for social protection and poverty reduction as set out in its Growth and Social Protection Strategy approved by Cabinet in 2006 and updated in 2008 under the theme, ‘Leveraging Sustained Growth’.