Photo credit: Canal 8

Tegucigalpa, December 11 (RHC)-- When the government of President Xiomara Castro implemented the Solidarity Network program, the population in extreme poverty in Honduras began to receive what had been taken away for 12 years by neoliberal administrations.

The initiative, described by the Honduran president as comprehensive, is being implemented in more than two thousand villages in the Central American country, where some 400 thousand families will benefit.

Recently, the Honduran head of state highlighted the government's efforts to implement this program, which -she said- is the most sensitive of her administration, as it is aimed at the neediest sectors.

The Solidarity Network is not a charity program, but one of attention, prevention and support especially for families to get them out of the conditions in which they find themselves, she explained.  The Honduran president also highlighted the government's responsibility to rebuild the rule of law and give back to the Honduran people the confidence and dignity lost in the last 12 years.

"I am not talking about dreams, but about realities and to tell you that if there is something that characterizes me, it is my word; when I pledge it, I give my life to fulfill it and much more when it is given to this people who have been so sacrificed in these last years," he added.

In this sense, she recalled that this initiative began during the government of former President Manuel Zelaya (2006-2009).  At that time there were 1,27 villages where there was extreme poverty, but unfortunately in 12 years of neoliberal governments, today we find that poverty has grown by 17 percent, she pointed out.

ECONOMIC APPROACH

For political analyst Alejandro Bonilla, the Solidarity Network is not a welfare project like the neoliberal programs, which in the end impoverished Hondurans even more. "It is focused on economic recovery so that people can get ahead," said Bonilla in an interview with Prensa Latina.

The member of the Libertad y Refundación (Libre) party pointed out that among the government's objectives is to incorporate, as a vital part of the country's economic development, thousands of people living in poverty.  "It has as a fundamental axis the creation of rural funds, the participation of women, bonuses for the elderly and people with disabilities," he said.

Bonilla recalled that previous administrations left a rate of more than 40 percent of people in poverty, and the mission of the first woman president of Honduras is to try to eradicate poverty in the country.

SOCIAL BENEFITS

For the government of Honduras, the initiative of the Solidarity Network is of vital importance because it gives continuity to the strategy implemented by the government of former President Manuel Zelaya before the coup d'état in 2009.