ISLAMABAD: The number of beneficiaries to be provided financial assistance under Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) is likely to see a remarkable increase as the federal government is expected to compile fresh consolidated data of the deserving persons, who are in need of financial support under BISP, by the end of this year, not later than December 31, 2020.

Sources told Business Recorder that funds for new BISP beneficiaries would be generated from Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme that had a total allocation of Rs 203 billion to provide one-time financial assistance of Rs 12000 each to 16.90 million beneficiaries to deal with COVID-19 fallout on the vulnerable. However, upon completion of the programme on September 15, 2020, 14.82 million beneficiaries had received Rs 179.19 billion.

The remaining Rs 24 billion, left undistributed under Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme, would be distributed among 2.08 million beneficiaries partly through BISP and partly through Ehsaas Programme and other social safety ventures, it is learnt.

“What exactly would be the number of beneficiaries that would be eligible to get financial assistance under BISP or Ehsaas Programme cannot be determined at this point as the consolidated data would be compiled by the end of December,” said a source in BISP privy to the matter.

Till December 2019, the total number of BISP beneficiaries was 5.9 million out of which 820,165 beneficiaries were declared ineligible and removed from BISP’s list which included 142,556 government employees including 2,543 gazetted officers (Grade 17 to 21), official sources told Business Recorder.

The remaining number of BISP beneficiaries after removal of 820,165 beneficiaries has been 4.27 million, sources added.

The launch of Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme in April this year saw the addition of 7.73 million new beneficiaries as well as 4.27 million BISP beneficiaries, with the total number of beneficiaries recorded at 12 million. With addition of another 2.82 million beneficiaries under Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme, the total number of beneficiaries, till date, is 14.82 million.

By the end of this year, fresh beneficiaries would be added and those who would be found to be no longer in need of BISP assistance, would be removed from BISP beneficiaries list, Business Recorder has learnt.

In December 2019, the government had increased quarterly grant for 4.27 million BISP beneficiaries from Rs 5000 to Rs 5500 (payment of Rs 5500 every three months). This amount is also expected to increase in the coming December, sources said.

The eligible beneficiaries for BISP, Ehsaas and federal government’s other social safety initiatives are identified through NADRA (National Database and Registration Authority) data analytics on the basis of their financial income, social status and related factors.

In the ongoing fiscal year 2020-21, the federal government allocated an overall amount of more than Rs 416.2 billion for social welfare initiatives and all the social safety institutions have been brought under the administrative ambit of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division (PASSD).

Out of Rs 416.2 billion, the government has allocated a sum of Rs 208 billion under Ehsaas Programme, out of which, Rs 203 billion were allocated under Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme and Rs 200 billion to provide financial assistance under BISP. Rs 6.1 billion have been allocated for Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (PBM) in fiscal year 2020-21 and Rs 2.1 billion have been allocated for PASSD mainly to meet operational expenses and staff salaries.

Additionally, Rs 2 billion have been allocated for Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF).

Sources said the federal government is implementing Ehsaas Governance and Integrity Policy and Observatory that was launched in November 2019, as part of the government’s move to gradually integrate different institutions working under PASSD and to ensure strict oversight to counter corruption. The policy is binding on PASSD and its executing agencies- BISP, PBM, PPAF, Trust for Voluntary Organizations (TVO) and Ehsaas Programme with an aim to discourage corruption and ensure rule-based control on the use of public resources and to promote efficiency, transparency and accountability in federal government’s social safety institutions.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020