President Ali announces nationwide child and elder-care programme

President Irfaan Ali on Thursday unveiled plans for a national programme aimed at strengthening childcare and elder-care services, creating new business opportunities, and easing the financial and personal burdens faced by parents and caregivers.

Speaking during a presidential outreach in New Amsterdam, the Head of State highlighted the challenges young professionals often face when balancing career aspirations with family responsibilities.

“Many persons raised with me the issue of…..they want to start their family by 25, 26 (year old) how you’re going to balance your professional life with the kids,” the President said. “I have to make those same decisions too, trust me, but it’s pretty complicated sometimes.”

Over the years, the government has trained large numbers of citizens under the Women’s Innovation and Investment Network (WIIN) programme, preparing them for careers in childcare and elder care. With this growing pool of trained workers, the administration is exploring ways to build and expand safe, professionally staffed care centres across the country.

“We were thinking how we can build facilities in which our elders and our young people can have their children taken care of in a safe environment,” he explained. “Care centres — while they pursue their professional and other goals, or in the case of the elderly, while they are being taken care of.”

The President said a series of new measures will soon be announced to help caregivers upgrade facilities and launch businesses, noting that the initiative could create opportunities for “thousands of persons trained under the WIN program.”

“If you have 20 children in your facility, the government will have a subsidized program so that parents don’t have to pay the full rate,” he said. “The government will intervene so that children will be taken care of in a safe environment. So instead of one or two facility in the region, the government intends to establish hundreds of facilities,” creating hundreds of jobs across the region.

Recognizing additional challenges faced by parents of children living with disabilities, President Ali announced plans for special tax incentives and direct support mechanisms to assist caregivers.