Childcare in the Caribbean Netherlands becomes more accessible for every child

The parental contribution for childcare in the Caribbean Netherlands will decrease considerably for most parents. Childcare must be accessible to all children from 2022 onwards. State Secretary Tamara van Ark (Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, SZW) and minister Arie Slob  (Ministry of Education, Culture and Science OCW) report this in a letter to the Second Chamber about the new financing system for childcare in the Caribbean Netherlands. Parents will pay less for childcare during the course of this year. A temporary subsidy scheme will then come into effect.

Last year the Central Government and the Public Entities of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba made agreements on improving childcare in the Caribbean Netherlands. The government and the islands have set up the BES(t) 4 kids program for this. With this program, work is being done to improve the quality of childcare and to make childcare (financially) accessible to all children. About 10 million euros is available for this each year. With the money, the costs that parents pay for childcare can go down considerably and there will be more room for the training and retraining of childcare workers.

At present, childcare on the islands is relatively expensive. Part of the parents cannot afford the costs of daycare or after-school care. From 2022, childcare in the Caribbean Netherlands will be arranged in such a way that it is accessible to all children. In view of the poverty, the socio-economic problems and the language problems in the Caribbean Netherlands, all children up to 4 years old are offered preschool education in childcare. The quality of out-of-school care for children in primary education (up to around 12 years) will also be improved.

The parental contribution will decrease considerably for most parents in the Caribbean Netherlands. Parents with a low income receive extra compensation, so that childcare is also accessible to them. In the context of the local poverty policy, the public entities also have the option to fully reimburse the costs for parents who cannot pay a contribution. In the coming period, further research will be conducted into the cost structure of childcare on the islands, in order to determine the correct amount of reimbursement. To be eligible for reimbursement, childcare organizations must be in possession of an operating license from the Public Entity. Childcare organizations that meet the conditions in the Island Ordinance Childcare are eligible for a license.

Temporary subsidy scheme
The government wants parents to be able to profit from this year’s investments in better childcare. Therefor a temporary subsidy scheme will come into effect mid-2020, in anticipation of the new situation. Childcare organizations with a license will then be eligible for a subsidy from the Central Government to reduce the parental contribution and to invest in the quality of childcare. The temporary subsidy scheme will be published later this year.