Zardari directs BISP for providing financial assistance to victims of terrorism.

ISLAMABAD, November 13, 2009 (Balochistan Times): President Asif Ali Zardari has directed Benazir Income Support Program to devise a program for proving financial assistance to the victims of terrorism. He also advised that the assistance of professional bodies running charities may also be sought to make BISP more effective and also to attract funds for the Program from various international donors. This he said while chairing a meeting in which presentations on Benazir Income Support Program and NADRA were given to him in the Presidency. The presentations were attended among others by Federal Minister for Labour and Manpower Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah, Minister for Interior Mr. Rehman A. Malik, Finance Minister Mr. Shoukat Tarin, Federal Minister for Health Mir Ejaz Jakhrani, Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar, Secretary General Mr. Salman Farooqui and Spokesperson to the President former Senator Farhat Ullah Babar. Briefing the media, Spokesperson to the President former Senator Farhat Ullah Babar informed that the President appreciated the extension of BISP program to Gilgit-Baltistan where more than 50,000 deserving families are being facilitated in under the program. The President stressed that the success of such initiatives require complete transparency and impartiality in the selection and disbursement processes so that it could fulfil its requisite targets. Ms. Farzana Raja, Chairperson BISP informed the meeting that cash grants, Waseela-e-Haq, poverty surveys, Benazir Smart Card, Mobile Banking, Health/Accident Insurance, vocational training and emergency relief packages are major components of BISP. The transparency in cash grants component is being ensured through functional separation mechanism and individual payment mechanism details are available on BISP website. She said that through Emergency Relief Package, an amount of Rs. 28 millions has been paid to 3965 families of FATA and Bajaur whereas Rs. 26 million paid to the 3729 earthquake affected families of Balochistan. She said that agreement with United Bank Limited has been signed to pay benefits to Ex-IDPs of Swat/Malakand. An amount of Rs. 3.82 billion approximately will be distributed and the distribution of funds would start by 5th December 2009. It may also be recalled that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced a contribution of $85 million to BISP following her participation in the second in a monthly lottery drawing hosted by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani in September this year. Waseela-e-Haq-a component of BISP, provides cash loans of Rs. 300,000 for economically disadvantaged families to support income-generating entrepreneurship. Mr. Babar said that that the world community recognizes and appreciates the utility and usefulness of the Program and the way it is being managed in a transparent manner above any party affiliations or any influence whatsoever. Mr. Ali Arshad Hakeem, Chairman NADRA, while briefing about various projects being undertaken by the organization said that NADRA is engaged in various projects both in Pakistan and assisting the foreign countries. These projects include Machine Readable Passports, Identity Cards and Civil Registration, Electronic and Highway Toll Collection, IDP registration and cash disbursement, Kiosk and e-Sahulat and BISP. On the other hand NADRA is assisting Sudan in Civil Registration System, Kenya in Passport Insurance and Control System, Bangladesh in National Drivers License System, UNHCR in Biometric Refugee Registration System and Nigeria in Identity Card Insurance System. He said that NADRA is working with BISP and World Bank in developing a Poverty Database in Pakistan based on World Banks poverty scorecard. These scorecards employ Proxy Mean Testing based on 13 variables, he informed

(THROUGH ASIA PULSE)