• Burmese
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
25 °c
Yangon
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home Specials Myanmar & COVID-19

Myanmar Govt, LIFT Fund Announce Extra Cash Payments to Help Most Vulnerable During COVID-19

Nyein Nyein by Nyein Nyein
May 27, 2020
in Myanmar & COVID-19
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0 0
A A
An internally displaced woman with her child in Karen State in 2017 / The Irrawaddy

An internally displaced woman with her child in Karen State in 2017 / The Irrawaddy

4.5k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The Department of Social Welfare (DSW) under the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, with financial support from the Livelihoods and Food Security Fund (LIFT), will provide an extra one-time cash payment of 30,000 kyats (US$21.36) each to 441,726 women and elderly people in five most vulnerable areas of Myanmar starting next week.

The $9-million fund aims to help pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and elderly people in four states and the Naga Self-Administered Zone (SAZ) to access food and health care during the COVID-19 pandemic period, said Daw San San Aye, the director-general of the DSW.

The support, in the form of one-time cash transfers, will be delivered to 241,425 people, including mothers of children under the age of 2 and pregnant women in Karen, Kayah, Chin and Rakhine states and the Naga SAZ in Sagaing Region, who are already receiving regular support under the DSW’s Maternal and Child Cash Transfer (MCCT) program.

RelatedPosts

Sagaing Quake Victims Still Lack Water Access

Sagaing Quake Victims Still Lack Water Access

May 9, 2025
372
Inside the Myanmar Junta’s Post-Earthquake Theater of Control

Inside the Myanmar Junta’s Post-Earthquake Theater of Control

May 7, 2025
1.3k
Bangladesh Backs UN Aid Corridor Proposal to Troubled Myanmar

Bangladesh Backs UN Aid Corridor Proposal to Troubled Myanmar

April 30, 2025
1.8k

The support will also go to 200,301 people over the age of 85 who are beneficiaries of the DSW’s nationwide Social Pension Program.

The two DSW programs were initiated in fiscal year 2017-18. Beneficiaries receive regular monthly support of 15,000 kyats under the MCCT program, supported by LIFT, and 10,000 kyats under the government’s Social Pension Program.

LIFT director Katy Webley said this particular cash transfer was “aimed at preventing the spread of COVID, providing for the safety of this vulnerable group and helping lift the community.”

She added that the social protection strategy, which is aimed at supporting those who are economically and socially vulnerable and helping to prevent their exclusion, helps not only families, but also communities and the country as a whole.

Daw San San Aye said the beneficiaries, who are vulnerable even in normal times, may currently be experiencing special difficulties accessing basic items. “We decided to provide the support through the existing programs to quickly respond to this need, which is what the rapid response social protection program is designed to do,” she said, explaining why the fund does not cover the whole country. But the support covers every community including internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Chin, Rakhine and Karen states, she added.

Daw San San Aye told The Irrawaddy via a video press conference on Wednesday that besides the MCCT program’s operation area in Chin, Rakhine, Karen, Kayah and the Naga SAZ, the one-time COVID-19 cash transfers would be sent to pregnant women and lactating mothers in IDP camps in Kachin and northern Shan states. Nearly 3,500 women in Kachin and northern Shan’s IDP camps will receive the government’s originally budgeted funds.

The director general added that the additional cash assistance in this COVID-19 period would be handed out in the first and second weeks of June.

Besides the cash support, the director general said beneficiaries would also receive leaflets and posters to boost health awareness.

She said township administrative officials and the DSW would work together to distribute the cash, while the respective parliamentarians, volunteer groups and NGOs would monitor the distribution “to show accountability.”

The cash support will help ease the direct impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on 400,000 people and the indirect impacts on nearly 2 million people across the country, organizers said.

Daw San San Aye added that Myanmar’s vision for social protection calls for an inclusive, equitable and sustainable system that facilitates access to essential social services, protects people from risks and shocks, addresses economic and social vulnerabilities and food insecurity, promotes economic opportunities and alleviates social exclusion, as per the government’s National Social Protection Strategic Plan of 2014.

As outlined in Goal 4 of the Government’s COVID-19 Coordinated Economic Relief Plan to ease the impact on households, Webley added, “in this time of uncertainty with perhaps reduced employment and [increased] health needs, putting cash in the hands of people across the country is the best way to help them prepare for the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.”

LIFT is supported by donors in the United Kingdom, the European Union, Switzerland, Australia, the United States, Canada and Ireland. It announced an overall COVID-19 assistance package worth $15.8 million in April, which is expected to benefit an estimated 5.9 million people in Myanmar.

LIFT will continue to be a partner working to support the government and those in nongovernment areas to improve nutrition, including through the MCCT, Webley told The Irrawaddy.

You may also like these stories:

Govt to Provide Aid to Displaced Persons

Myanmar’s Central Bank Says Banking Will Continue Despite Coronavirus

Your Thoughts …
Tags: COVID-19Humanitarian Aid
Nyein Nyein

Nyein Nyein

The Irrawaddy

Similar Picks:

The Uncertain Future of Myanmar’s Rakhine State
Guest Column

The Uncertain Future of Myanmar’s Rakhine State

by David Scott Mathieson
March 19, 2025
9.6k

The Arakan Army must now consolidate its unprecedented territorial gains in Rakhine State and contend with humanitarian, intercommunal and international...

Read moreDetails
Myanmar Junta Causes Thailand Problems
Guest Column

Myanmar Junta Causes Thailand Problems

by Paul Greening
March 7, 2024
6.8k

The multiple crises on Thailand’s border sparked by the Myanmar junta’s failed coup could present opportunities for Bangkok, but so...

Read moreDetails
UN Condemns Looting and Burning of WFP Warehouse by Myanmar Junta in Rakhine
Burma

UN Condemns Looting and Burning of WFP Warehouse by Myanmar Junta in Rakhine

by The Irrawaddy
June 25, 2024
4.2k

Border Guard troops stole rice then torched building while retreating from Arakan Army, say local reports.

Read moreDetails
The UN Has Failed the People of Myanmar, Says Former Country Head
Interview

The UN Has Failed the People of Myanmar, Says Former Country Head

by Aung Zaw
March 1, 2024
4.2k

The revolutionary governments emerging in Karenni and elsewhere could allow international aid to be delivered in a new way, Sir...

Read moreDetails
Understanding Myanmar as Interim ‘Non-State’ State
Guest Column

Understanding Myanmar as Interim ‘Non-State’ State

by Thitinan Pongsudhirak
March 5, 2024
4.1k

With power devolving to ethnic armed groups and revolutionary bodies, the international community must find a new way to deal...

Read moreDetails
In Myanmar, Diplomats Are Being Trapped Inside a Disquieting Bubble
Guest Column

In Myanmar, Diplomats Are Being Trapped Inside a Disquieting Bubble

by Igor Blazevic
July 26, 2024
3.8k

Myanmar-focused diplomats still regard the military as the key to the country’s future, leaving them woefully unprepared for the reality...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
Women take part in the International Day of Peace march in Yangon in 2012. / The Irrawaddy

A tribute to United Nations Peace Keepers and the Women of Peace in Myanmar

Migrant workers and their families wait to get on a bus as they head for their homes in Uttar Pradesh state during an extended lockdown to slow the spread  of COVID-19 in New Delhi on Tuesday. / REUTERS

No Way Back: Indian Workers Shun City Jobs After Lockdown Ordeal

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

Is TNLA, Under Chinese Pressure, Conceding Northern Shan Gateway to the Regime?

Is TNLA, Under Chinese Pressure, Conceding Northern Shan Gateway to the Regime?

4 days ago
1.3k
China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

2 days ago
1.1k

Most Read

  • Myanmar Junta Attacks to Reclaim KIA’s Jade and Rare Earth Strongholds

    Myanmar Junta Attacks to Reclaim KIA’s Jade and Rare Earth Strongholds

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • China’s Bet on Myanmar Junta Risks Backfiring

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Updated Timeline: Key Events in the Life of Myanmar’s Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Defusing the Thai-Cambodian Border Row

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Books
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.