Applications are now open for the Social Cash Transfers Assistance Programme which is intended to help vulnerable individuals and families impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of the programme is to provide temporary income support to eligible vulnerable individuals and families who have experienced a loss or reduction of income and consumption due the negative impacts of COVID-19 quarantines, curfews and shutdowns.

Three thousand (3000) people, 2000 of whom are automatically registered under the Public Assistant Programme (PAP), are to benefit from the programme. These PAP beneficiaries will be automatically included in the programme. They will receive two top-ups of 225 EC dollars for a period of two months for a total value of $450 EC.

The groups that are being assisted in this programme are eligible senior citizens (between the age of 60 and 69), persons with disabilities who are not registered on the PAP and are not receiving other types of financial support and other vulnerable groups as approved by the government of the Commonwealth of Dominica including eligible fisherfolks and/or fish vendors and small craft vendors and/or producers.

The groups must meet one or more of the following qualifying conditions:

- Be ineligible to receive assistance under other COVID-19 response programmes including the Employee and Small Business Programme, the Self-Employed Individual Grant Assistance, the Agriculture Crop and Livestock Support and the Direct Farm Support Cash Grant
- Not be receiving financial support through other social assistance programmes

The programme is being implemented by the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment, Youth at Risk, Gender Affairs, Seniors Security and Dominicans with Disabilities with the support of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). It is funded by the UK Foreign Office, Commonwealth and Development Office and WFP.