The public entities of Saba, St. Eustatius and Bonaire are working with the Ministry of VWS to organize assistance and support for people with an illness or disability, and elderly people who live at home.

New agreements were made last year, and the accompanying legislation must come into effect on  January 1^st, 2024. Preparations got underway at the start of this year, so that all organizations will be ready to implement the new activities. Commissioner Eviton Heyliger from Saba, commissioner James Kroon from Bonaire, Central Government Commissioner Alida Francis from St. Eustatius, and State Secretary for VWS, Maarten van Ooijen, gathered on June 7^th in a meeting that partly took place online and partly in person on Bonaire. All involved parties confirmed their commitment to the established agreements.

A solid foundation for everyone in the Kingdom

State Secretary van Ooijen: “By offering effective social support, we can allow everyone to continue living autonomously and remain at home for as long as possible, irrespective of disability, illness or age. I believe that an equivalent level of care and support must be available throughout the Kingdom. So I am extremely pleased that these agreements will allow us to take an important step towards establishing a solid foundation for social support.”

Participating in society for as long as possible

The aim of the agreements is to support ill or disabled inhabitants of the Caribbean Netherlands by, for example, offering support or daytime activities. No legislation is currently in place on this front. During the visit of the state secretary, new discussions took place about the importance of social support and how all parties are doing when it comes to implementing their new tasks and responsibilities. All attending parties have expressed their willingness to the implementation of the process and for achieving the starting date of January 1^st, 2024.

RCN