Of the 282,000 applications received for the $50 cash assistance program, the Fijian Government has of today paid out around $11.2million to more than 224,000 Fijians above 18 years old.
Funds have been disbursed to those eligible individuals through their M-PAiSA or MyCASH digital wallets, which they are able to withdraw cash or purchase goods directly from any registered outlets.
According to a Government statement, a total of 58,000 applicants were not eligible for the program, and majority of these applications (28,000) were from those below the age of 18 and they applied through multiple phone numbers.
The remainder of the applications were declined because they were receiving:
- unemployment assistance for the formal sector through the joint Government/FNPF Scheme (22,671);
- student allowances through TSLB – (5012); and
- social welfare payments (2228).
The statement said this assistance was in addition to the $90 cash assistance paid out earlier to 118,000 households, totaling $10.6million.
The Government urged recipients to use the $50 on groceries and other essential items at their own convenience.
The verification and processing of this assistance was a joint effort by the Ministry of Economy, Vodafone, Digicel, Fiji Revenue and Customs Service, FNPF, Tertiary Scholarship and Loans Board, and Ministry of Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation.
