Social Affairs offers one-time financial aid
POSTED: 08/20/12 5:37 PMSt. Maarten – Citizens can make use of the one-time financial assistance that is available at the Department of Social Services to purchase school uniforms and to cover other costs for education, the ministry of public health, social development and labor affairs said in a statement issued yesterday.
The help is for qualifying parents; it is based on an island ordinance dating back to 1996 that regulates the allocation of financial aid. To qualify applicants must have the Dutch nationality and they must have been a resident for at least three months. Furthermore they must be in or on the verge of being in such a condition, that they cannot provide for the basic necessities of their own existence.
“As minister of public health social development and labor, I am asking those who are not able to take care of their child’s basic educational needs to please take advantage of this service. The education of your child is very important for future growth and contribution to our society,” Minister Cornelius De Weever stated yesterday.
A special team at the department will be solely working on applications, so that they can be expedited in a timely fashion.
The Department of Social Services is located on Walter Nisbeth Road 57, Pondfill; phone: 542 35 61, 543 75 09 or 542 37 03.
