Last Updated on: 19th November 2024, 03:45 pm
The government of Pakistan has approved an additional budget for the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP). This increase will enable more beneficiaries to receive their Kafaalat payments in upcoming instalments. Facing financial difficulties, the federal government received a loan of $330 million (Rs. 92 billion) to expand the program.
$330 million Loan Approval for BISP
The Central Development Working Party (CDWP), led by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, approved the concept paper of the Integrated Social Protection Development Program (ISPDP). This will give additional funds of $330 million. The funds will increase the central bank’s reserves while ensuring that BISP beneficiaries receive cash payments.
ADB To Charge 2% Interest On Loan
Now discuss one of the important points: BISP has already received a $600 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), of which they already spent $500 million. This new financing has an interest rate of 2%. Currently, the BISP gives unconditional cash assistance to 9.3 million households, targeting primarily women with families while avoiding duplication by excluding never-married women.
BISP Program to Reduce Poverty in All Provinces
Cash transfers will reduce poverty, although some fear that the use of foreign loans will worsen debt problems if the money is not invested in income-generating sectors. Faced with wider economic challenges, Pakistan has sought to restructure a $3.4 billion project debt owed to China.
How the $330m Loan Will Be Used
Between 2025 and 2028, the $330 million loan will meet various needs. We will use the funds to finance education and healthcare for children and adolescents from low-income households, give nutritional assistance to women and adolescents, and improve the Benazir Nashonuma Program. This initiative helps younger generations from poor families get proper education up to grade 12, strengthening their human capital.
BISP: Support System for Eligible Women and Their Children
The additional funding will reinforce the steps taken to focus the impacts of climate change on nutrition and continue to provide support to mothers, children, and adolescents. The BISP will expand the free health services for impoverished pregnant and lactating women and children (PLW) beyond the original 22 areas to all districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
Last Words
The government’s approval of this loan reaffirms its commitment to reducing poverty and improving the lives of deserving families across Pakistan. By expanding financial assistance, education, healthcare, and climate change, the program will promote the long-term well-being of needy people.