A Ray of Hope From Two New Organizations

----At the end of 1999 unemployment in St. Lucia stood at 15.7%, the level of  poverty - 25.1%. Yes, a quarter of the population living below the poverty line, unable to afford a $156.13 grocery package of basic essentials each month!

As these numbers clearly indicate, drastic measures need to be taken to address the problem of poverty in our communities. To help meet the needs of  under-privileged communities and individuals, the government of St. Lucia has founded two social organisations.

The first, the Poverty Reduction Fund (PRF) began operations in August 1998. The James Belgrave Micro Enterprise Development Fund (BELFund) followed in May 2000. While both organisations aim to improve the lifestyle of people in the lower economic bracket, they each take a different approach to doing so.

The PRF gives directly to communities by coordinating projects that will introduce essential services and develop physical infrastructure where needed. BELFund aims to help individuals improve their economic status with low-cost loans, enterprise training, technical assistance and other support services to the less privileged.

Since opening, the Poverty Reduction Fund has assisted development in several communities. In the last year - 1999, forty community projects were completed and the number is expected to rapidly increase.

The PRF accepts proposals from the public in general and then has 
discussions with the community to confirm that the project is of importance 
to them before taking it to the Board for approval. During these 
discussions, communities usually agrees to make a contribution of manpower, materials etc. to the project.

These contributions are very important when making the decision to undertake a project, as it helps the PRF to maximise their projects fund, which is sponsored by the European Union through the STABEX allocations. PRF is also funded by a World Bank learning and innovation loan.

While BELFund is expected to source similar funding from the international community in the future, it is currently using monies provided by the government of St. Lucia. The monies from the government grant are used to provide loans to micro-entrepreneurs unable to source funds from traditional lending institutions.

Enterprise training, technical assistance and accounting services are 
factored into the loans to ensure success of the project. At the time of 
interviewing, two sets of entrepreneurs had received their loans and gone through the training programme.

BELFund will continue to monitor the progress of those clients over the 
period of the loans and provide overall support and assistance. Former 
clients will still be able to contract those support services after the loan 
period.

This gives life to the Fund's stated aim - to promote sustainable 
development through self-help projects; in line with the adage "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach him to fish and you feed him for life." By making the technical assistance and overall support a part of the loan package, BELFund ensures that its clients are in a position to take care of their financial needs in the long term, while contributing to the welfare of the wider society.

Click here to read interview with interim Executive Director of the Poverty Reduction Fund Mr. Donovan Williams

Click here to read interview with General Manager of the James Belgrave Micro-enterprise Development Fund Mr. Marcellus Joseph