Announcement of tax breaks, other financial incentives a hit with parents

FATHER of three, Heimat Ram estimates that he spends over $60,000 when shopping for his children at the beginning of each school year, so, like many parents across the country, he welcomes Monday’s announcement that the government will be issuing $15,000 cash grants per student, in addition to doubling the uniform voucher per child to $4000.
Desmond Garnett, of Belle West, West Bank Demerara, who also has three children, is elated about the initiative, and is looking forward to the assistance, given the weight of expenses parents face in sending each child to school.

“It’s a good move to help people, because, in this time, people need a lot of help; especially the parents,” Garnett said, adding: “Each child $19,000! You making
joke! I welcome it, man!”
A former GuySuCo employee at the now shuttered Wales Estate, Garnett says that sending children to school is a necessary but costly venture.
“Buying school supplies is very expensive; you have to buy boots for each one of them, and a bag. And you have to talk about school clothes, “Garnett said. “Then, if you look at how much you spend for a month in passage and things for them to eat, it’s over $20,000 you spend for one child. And I have three sons in school, so it’s very expensive to send them to school.”

BECAUSE WE CARE
Initiated in 2014 under the previous PPP/C administration, and called the “Because We Care” project, cash grants of $10,000 per each child in public school were issued to parents, with the aim of providing them with support, and increasing their disposable income, with a view to raising enrollment and attendance rates. The initiative was discontinued in 2015, when the government changed, however, the PPP/C had campaigned to restore the grants while on the 2020 Elections campaign trail.

The new financial measures to assist parents was announced by President Irfaan Ali on Monday, during a press conference held at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre (ACCC), where it was also announced that the corporate tax for private education was also being removed. Additionally, in initiatives geared towards the education sector, the President announced that some $200M has been allocated to expanding the Guyana Learning Channel.

These measures are all part of the $330B Emergency Budget for 2020, that is scheduled to be revealed in its entirety tomorrow. For most parents, however, it is the cash grants that they’re interested in the most.
President Ali said the cash grants will be issued at the beginning of January 2021.
“It would help us a lot with buying school things, because you wouldn’t really have to go into your savings; you could work with your normal budget,” commented Ram, who has two daughters and a son.
“With my son and my older daughter,” he said, “between dem two, it comes up to $50,000 to $60,000 on items alone. For the small one, I would say she own is about $15,000 to $20,000.”

A Graphic Designer by profession, Ram said as finances go, it was particularly hard on his family’s budget during last year, as his daughter was preparing to write the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA).
“I remember one day alone we went in town and buy about four books, and it come up to about $16,000 to $17, 000, because we had to buy brand new ones from Austin’s, because some of the places didn’t had it,” he noted.

CUTTING CORNERS
Ram shared that notwithstanding the high prices, trying to cut corners meant sacrificing quality, which did not work out in the end. So, over the years, the school bills for the children has been increasing.
“You does have to buy dem expensive things for them, because they does eat out dem cheap things like dem book bag and shoes,” he said, adding: “During the ‘Common Entrance’ year, she run through about three or four bags, ‘til we just end up buying one of them expensive bags fuh she. And we does have to buy Skechers boots, because dem children does break up dem other things.”

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand shared that she, too, is delighted that the cash grant was considered and included in this year’s Budget, as she understands what it means for many parents who struggle to source adequate finances to send their children to school.
“I am very happy; I know persons are looking forward to it,” Minister Manickchand said, adding: “You would be surprised at how many persons find it a big help for them, so I am very glad that it’s happening. It is a promise that we made, not in a vacuum, but based on what people said they wanted. And I am glad that we were able to deliver that.”

She noted that while the initiative has officially been announced, the specifics of the project is still being worked out, so a method of distribution has not yet been decided upon.
“I know the last time we gave vouchers that were encashed at Western Union, while in the hinterland, we gave cash. So, we do have to work on how we’re going to do this,” the Minister noted.
In an earlier interview last month, Minister Manickchand had noted that while the PPP/C did intend to honour its promise of restoring the grant, finding an appropriate means of distribution, in light of the COVID-19 situation, would provide some challenges.

The Minister noted that she also could not say just yet if private-school students would be included in the initiative. During its roll- out in 2014, parents with children in private schools had lobbied for the programme to be extended to include their kids too.
Minister Manickchand, in the interview last month agreed that a child being in a private school is not necessarily an indication that the parents are not in need of financial aid, and so thought will be given to those children to also be recipients, when the project re-commences. However, whether that could be afforded at this time would depend on the budgetary allocation that the project gets, and how the specifics are worked out, given the magnitude of students there are.
There are currently approximately 170,000 students in the public-school system.