Rise of Trinidad and Tobago’s ‘new poor’

The Living Water Community (LWC; ‘the Community’) is facing an unprecedented increase in demand for assistance, driven not only by long-standing poverty but by a growing group of working individuals and families who are struggling to survive in today’s economic climate.

Speaking December 12, 2025 on Altos, Rosemary Scott, the newly appointed Director of the LWC, described what she termed the emergence of “the new poor” — people who are employed but can no longer make ends meet.

“Since Covid, it’s like a new poor that’s out there,” Scott explained. “These are people who are not necessarily people who don’t work, but making those ends meet is just getting further and further apart.”

Traditionally, LWC’s outreach focused largely on those who were unemployed or socially marginalised, including elderly caregivers raising grandchildren. While that need has not disappeared, Scott said the organisation has had to rethink how it assesses and responds to requests for help.

“We have had to rethink, reorganise, restructure, do a different type of interview with people coming in,” she said, noting that the scale and nature of need has shifted significantly.

The rise in demand has coincided with a decline in resources. Scott highlighted the sharp reduction in overseas donations that once sustained much of LWC’s food distribution.

“To give an example,” she said, “there’s a funding agency that has helped us over the years with containers of foodstuff, like rice. We would get an average of 12 containers of rice throughout the year. This last year, we got one.”

Despite these challenges, the need has not diminished. “The poor are still there to be fed,” Scott stressed, adding that the Community continues to source essential staples such as rice, flour, peas, and sugar through alternative means.

The scale of the increase is striking. LWC distributes food hampers twice monthly to families it supports on an ongoing basis, while attempting to rotate assistance to accommodate new applicants. However, Scott acknowledged that many families can no longer be phased out.

In addition, emergency food support has surged dramatically. “We used to give out an average of about 25 smaller hampers in a week,” she said. “Now we’re doing 30 to 40 a day.”

Importantly, Scott emphasised that this is not confined to Port of Spain. “It isn’t a Port of Spain issue. It’s across the board,” she said, noting that people are coming from communities as far afield as Couva, Sangre Grande, and beyond.

LWC also supports numerous community groups throughout Trinidad and Tobago, often supplying food in bulk so that assistance can reach further into local areas. While Christmas brings an increase in generosity, Scott reminded viewers that hunger does not end with the season.

“People are extremely generous at Christmas, and we are very grateful for that,” she said. “But be mindful that the poor are with us all the time.”

Scott outlined several ways the public can support LWC’S mission. Financial contributions allow the organisation to purchase food in bulk, while donations of individual items such as flour, sugar, or complete hampers are also welcome. Volunteers, too, play a vital role.

“Some people come and give their time,” she said. “Can I come in once a week and help pack hampers? There are so many ways.”

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