Pensioners will soon be using their thumb print to access financial services, Minister of the People and Social Development Dr Glenn Ramadharsingh, says. He was addressing a ceremony to distribute long-term food cards to more than 200 people on Tuesday at the offices of Couva South MP, Chase Village, Chaguanas. Ramadharsingh said Cabinet had recently given the nod for the approval of a biometric system that would see pensioners using their fingerprints to gain access to their bank accounts.
He said the biometric system would also allow the ministry to do away with the need for pensioners to have to complete life certificates each year. Ramadharsingh said the programme should take effect by January and would eventually encompass everyone receiving social services.
He said through the social welfare division, 82,000 people now get pensions monthly. Some 45,000 people are using the direct deposit facility to get their pensions deposited directly into their bank account, while 24,000 people get grants for the disabled, he said. As of July, 2013, Ramadharsingh said 42,202 people were using the food card facility while 8,698 had graduated from the programme by increasing their household earning capacity as a result of gaining employment opportunities.
Ramadharsingh said from that number, 208 people have gone into their own business. He said under the two-year food card system, people would be supported by the Government on the road to financial independence.