NA Standing Committee Reviews Digitalisation & Sustainability of Welfare Programs

The NA Standing Committee on Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety held its 14th meeting today at 11:00 AM in the Constitution Room No.5, Parliament House, Islamabad. The meeting was convened to review the operational timelines and financial sustainability of the nation’s primary social welfare initiatives. The session yielded significant updates on digitalisation efforts and budgetary challenges, underscoring a concerted push for greater transparency and efficiency in public assistance programs.

The Secretary of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) apprised the Standing Committee that the institution is ahead of its scheduled digital transformation. A pilot for the new digital wallet system is slated for launch in Azad Jammu and Kashmir in January or February, with the full provision for 10 million beneficiaries targeted for completion by March 2026. The Acting Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan further elaborated that 3.7 million SIMs linked to limited mandated accounts have already been issued, with digital wallets activated. He confirmed that the BISP’s next quarterly instalments will be disbursed through this mechanism. On the critical issue of interoperability, a three-month timeline has been established for One Link to deliver an integrated solution, after which beneficiaries will be able to utilise their wallets for online payments and cash withdrawals at ATMs of any of the six partner banks and their POS agents. The Secretary of BISP requested the Committee’s support in ensuring consistent banking access for beneficiaries and suggested exploring an arrangement with the One Link, similar to that it has with the Federal Board of Revenue, to facilitate seamless payments.

Conversely, the Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (PBM) presented a pressing budgetary shortfall. The Director of Finance informed the Committee that the organisation’s allocated budget was Rs. 14.2 billion against an original requirement of Rs. 18.5 billion. This was quite insignificant as its current quarter budget has already been exhausted. Despite this strain, the PBM Board has approved a substantial increase in its financial assistance thresholds, raising the monthly requirement for beneficiaries for financial assistance from Rs. 37,000 to Rs. 74,000 and enhancing educational stipends from Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 150,000. The Managing Director of PBM noted that approximately 38-39% of PBM grants are dedicated to medical assistance, and the institution has formally submitted its budgetary demands for the 2026-27 fiscal year, factoring in inflationary pressures and rising medical costs. He expressed confidence that the government would approve this increase to enable PBM to serve a larger segment of the vulnerable population.

The Committee issued several directives to strengthen accountability and oversight. It mandated PBM to submit a detailed report on hospitals blacklisted for corrupt practices and to investigate allegations of partisan behaviour by its hospital desk staff, who have been accused of selectively providing information to beneficiaries. The Committee emphasised the necessity of a robust second-balance audit mechanism to detect any pilferage of funds within hospital networks or PBM activities. Furthermore, the Committee requested a comprehensive list from BISP detailing all media outlets where advertisements worth Rs. 240 million were placed, the duration and contractual pay of all of its consultants, and a provincial and departmental breakdown of the 134 deportations that are currently serving in the program.

In other developments, the PBM Managing Director highlighted ongoing vocational initiatives, including training programs for 20,000 women, with a new cohort to commence in six months, and the incorporation of courses for the national and international job markets. He also brought to light a regional disparity, noting a significantly lower demand for cochlear implants in Sindh compared to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, and formally sought the Committee’s assistance in advancing legislation to mandate universal newborn hearing screening to ensure timely medical intervention.

The NA Standing Committee concluded by underscoring that systemic constraints, particularly PBM’s funding limitations and human resource challenges, are severely hindering the efficacy of the social safety net. The Committee resolved that a subsequent meeting shall be held in Karachi, bringing together presidents from the six partner banks, 1-Link (Private) Limited, and the State Bank of Pakistan, to assess the progress of the BISP digital wallet project and facilitate strategic alignment.

The NA Standing Committee was attended by the following Members of the National Assembly:

• Mir Ghulam Ali Talpur
• Mr Mohammad Ilyas Choudhary
• Ms Saba Talpur
• Ms Aasia Ishaque Siddiqui
• Mr Misbah uddin
• Mr Shahid Usman
• Ms Huma Akhter Chughtai
• Ms Naima Kanwal

The Chairperson of BISP, Senator Rubina Khalid, Managing Director Pakistan Bait ul Mal, Senator Captain (R) Shaheen Khalid Butt, Secretary Ministry of Poverty Allevation and Social Safety, Secretary BISP and other senior officers from BISP and Pakistan Bait ul Mal were also in attendance.