WILLEMSTAD – The Cabinet Pisas III will once again pay a so-called bashí bonus this month to employees of government entities and government-subsidized institutions. According to sources following the government’s recent announcement, eligible workers will receive a one-time gross payment of 800 guilders.
The bashí bonus is a one-off appreciation payment that was also granted last year. In January 2025, the government paid a 1,000-guilder gross bonus to employees of subsidized institutions as recognition for their work during 2024. That payment followed a decision by the Council of Ministers and was distributed through ministerial decrees to the institutions involved in the run-up to the March 2025 elections.
The renewed payment comes as discussions continue about employee compensation, purchasing power, and inflation pressures affecting public sector and subsidized workers.
Political and financial debate
Last year’s bashí bonus sparked debate in both political and financial circles. In June 2025, the Committee of Financial Supervision (Cft) criticized the payout, noting that the expenditure had been made without prior formal authorization by the Curaçao Parliament through a budgetary process, as required under the Kingdom’s financial supervision rules.
According to the Cft, this raised questions about the legal basis of the payment, despite the government’s substantive justification for granting the bonus.
At the time, the government defended the measure by pointing to declining purchasing power and sustained inflationary pressure. It also acknowledged that the formal authorization would follow retroactively through a supplementary budget.
With the new bashí bonus now announced, questions may again arise about budgetary discipline and parliamentary oversight, even as the government frames the payment as a gesture of appreciation toward workers in the public and subsidized sectors.
