May 11, 2016: May 4th 2016 marked the start of a series of community outreaches to be undertaken by the Main-People Issues Resolution and Coordinating Unit of the Ministry of Social Development and Family Services.
The first outreach took place with a formal opening ceremony at the Guayaguayare Community Centre, where the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Jacinta Bailey-Sobers gave the feature address and provided the basis for the outreach initiative. According to PS Sobers-Bailey, the Ministry took the decision to start in the communities of Rio Claro and Mayaro because this region was identified as having a very high level of poverty in the country.
The PS indicated that given the present economic downturn it was imperative that vulnerable groups and individuals be informed and empowered with details on how to access programmes and services to meet their immediate needs. She also told the audience that the outreaches will provide information on where emphasis should be channelled with respect to the Ministry’s programmes designed to address poverty. PS Sobers announced that the Ministry of Social Development and Family Services was also in the process of developing a Social Mitigation Plan to cushion the effects of the economic downturn and so the exercise will also be useful in gathering data towards designing this very important plan.
Also present were Member of Parliament for the area Rushton Parray, Minister of Agriculture Land and Fisheries, the Honourable Clarence Rambharat as well as Councillors and other representatives of the Rio Claro Regional Corporation. Among the participating Ministries and Agencies were The National Maintenance Training and Security Company Limited (MTS) Physicians Pharmaceuticals Ltd PPL, the Agricultural Development Bank, The National Agricultural Marketing and Development Corporation (NAMDEVCO), the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and Arts, the Ministry of the Attorney General & Legal Affairs, the National Training Agency, TT Connect, the National Commission for Self Help, the Eastern Regional Health Authority and the MIC Institute of Technology.
A total of fifteen (15) Glucose Monitoring machines, two (2) Blood Pressure kits, hundreds of Vitamin tablets and one (1) Wheel Chair were given out to clients. Several persons visited the Ministry’s Mobile Unit and eleven (11) persons received counselling and other information on how to access and qualify for the Ministry’s programmes and services. Representatives for the Policy Programme Planning and Development Division, HIV Coordinating Unit, National Poverty Reduction and Eradication Programmes Coordinating Unit and the Social Investigation Division were also in attendance to assist those in attendance.
The Ministry intends to take its programmes and services to other communities in the upcoming weeks. Part of its overall outreach strategy is to meet the people where they are and bring the social services to them, so that no one is left behind.
