GEORGETOWN, Guyana - The seventh cycle of the Guyana leg of the Basic Needs Trust Fund (BNTF) was launched today to enable projects in vulnerable communities geared towards improving access to basic public services, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.
The BNTF programme is a direct targeted poverty reduction programme of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) with Guyana and nine other Caricom countries. With US$6.1M funding from the bank and the Guyana Government’s US$1M contribution, the total programme size of the project is US$7.1M.
President of the CDB Dr. William Warren Smith, speaking at the launch at Duke Lodge, Kingston, said from 1970 to 2012, Guyana has been the largest beneficiary accessing US$165M in SDF loans at 2% interest. Dr Smith said Guyana has received 12% of the total BNTF seventh cycle funding, the highest amount any country is receiving, a reflection of the CDB’s interest in Guyana.