Punjab Finance Minister Dr Ayesha Ghaus Pasha has said that the Punjab Social Protection Authority (PSPA) will provide technical and financial assistance to different departments in ongoing and future projects of social protection in collaboration with the World Bank.
The Social Protection Authority in collaboration with the departments of social welfare, labour and human resource, and education has provided stipends through 'Khidmat Cards' to 80,000 disabled persons, 87,000 children of labourers and 46,000 deserving girls. Moreover, a nutrition programme with the cost of Rs 700 million has been launched to meet the food necessities of infants born in poor families to make it possible to ensure staple food for better mental and physical growth of new generation.
Dr Pasha said this while presiding over a review meeting during her visit to the Punjab Social Protection Authority office on Friday. CEO PSPA Dr Suhail Anwar, Deputy Chief Executive Officer Tahir Raza Hamdani and other high officials of the authority were present on this occasion.
She said for progress of village women, in collaboration with Punjab Live Stock department, a scheme worth Rs 600 million regarding transfer of assets has been introduced. Milk-producing cattle were being provided to destitute and disabled women to make them self-sufficient by earning livelihood, she added.
She expressed her great satisfaction on the overall performance of PSPA, particularly development on monitoring and evaluation system. She directed the PSPA authorities to initiate 'Subh-e-Noor' Programme on priority basis. On the occasion, Dr Suhail Anwar informed the minister that 25,000 disabled women will be benefited from transfer of assets scheme by getting Khidmat Cards. He further informed her that interest-free loans amounting to Rs 550 million have been provided for restoration of disabled persons.
"The PSPA has been establishing a regular system of monitoring and evaluation in all Social Protection projects to give it a mechanized shape and promote the efforts in this regard. Data base of 106 social protection programmes of 24 different departments has been prepared successfully. The Social Protection Authority is going to launch Subh-e-Noor Programme for children with visual disability in future to control increasing rate of blindness in children," he added.
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