KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) – Come June 1, the Government will increase its budgetary allocation to the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) by 30 per cent.

This will benefit some 360,000 persons who are on the programme, says Minister of Labour and Social Security, Shahine Robinson.Making her contribution to the 2017/2018 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives, on Wednesday, she urged parents to ensure full attendance of their children at school.The Minister said schools have been reporting irregular attendance of children, and that last year only 79 per cent of students at the secondary level, who are on PATH, achieved the 85 per cent attendance requirement.She said that with support from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), through the school-feeding programme, the Government is ensuring that children are better served.“In the area of transportation, $21 million was spent last year as allowances for PATH students. This year, the amount has been increased to $115 million,” the Minister said.She added that a further $120 million in bursaries and grants will be available for those students who move from secondary to post-secondary institutions, while an additional $100 million will be provided to students at the tertiary level.With PATH celebrating 15 years, Robinson said $15 million has been earmarked for scholarships, so that children can realise their dreams. The Minister implored families to secure the future of children now, by sending them to school.Meanwhile, she said persons with disabilities need to be in the mainstream of development, and “we must work together to remove the barriers and stigma towards persons with disabilities”.In May, the Ministry will commence a public awareness campaign on disability issues and the Disability Act, to ensure that the society understands the rights of disabled persons. The Minister said work has started to renovate the Ministry’s offices for better accessibility to persons with disabilities. “They will now have the necessary ramps, rails and bathroom spaces,” she noted.“We will be training some of our frontline staff in sign language, so that they can communicate with the deaf community,” she said, adding that there are plans to train and certify interpreters.