Will the Grocery Bag Program Continue?

What is the future of the food assistance program?  Minister of Human Development, Dolores Balderamos Garcia, has publicly stated that the program has funds that will continue to the end of the financial year – essentially two more months. The Ministry merged the COVID-19 Food Assistance Program and the Grocery Bag Program (formerly known as Pantry) at the start of the year. The revamped program was aimed at helping the most vulnerable families in the country. Going into a new fiscal year, Prime Minister Briceño says his government is actively doing everything possible to keep the program going.

John Briceño

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Certainly it is something for us to take a look at. We know that there is a need for the grocery bag program to continue. So we will be taking a hard look at the finances that are available and try to do everything possible to try and control that problem. Remember that you only could barrow so much and what the U.D.P. was doing is that they were borrowing and spending as if there was no tomorrow and in many instances they were spending recklessly. A lot of the money that were barrowed should have lasted us until March of this year but because of their recklessness’ and going into an election they spent everything. So then we have to scramble to try to find new monies. So as it is, what we want to do now is to see where the avenues, where is there that we can possible find more finding to be able to continue the program as best as we possibly can and as long as we possibly could afford.”