Focusing on federal areas: Health development budget halved

Funding cut after government stops funding to vertical programmes following devolution of subject to provinces

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has slashed its development budget by over half, allocating just Rs25 billion for 57 development projects under the health ministry.

This is down from the Rs54 billion earmarked under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for the health ministry in the fiscal year 2017-18 when it had been enhanced by 80 per cent over the fiscal year 2016-17.

However, the slash may be due to fact that the government has stopped funding vertical programmes since health has been devolved to the provinces. These programmes include the national family planning and primary healthcare programme which previously ate up around Rs.16 billion. Now, the Council of Common Interest (CCI) would decide whether the provincial governments or the federal government would provide funds to these for these programmes.



New hospitals

The government, though, has announced around 37 new development schemes across the country, setting aside Rs18 billion for them.

Under the new schemes, Rs1.317 billion has been allocated for new hospitals announced by the prime minister. These include 46 new facilities of 500, 250 and 100 bed hospitals across Pakistan.

The government had allocated money in the outgoing fiscal year to start work on some of these hospitals, but it could not materialize.

In ongoing schemes, the government has allocated Rs4 billion for the second phase of the Prime Minster’s National Health Programme while about Rs0.108 billion has been allocated for the Pakistan Nutrition Programme.



Ending stunting

During his speech on Friday, Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said that “as a father of three children, I am ashamed to tell you that 30 per cent of Pakistani children are stunted due to malnutrition and inadequate food. This is a moment of reflection for all of us.  This is a matter of shame for us. This is no more tolerable”.

He announced to allocate at least Rs10 billion for a programme that will end child stunting.

Should the programme require more money, he promised to provide it through a supplementary grant. “Standing today in front of this picture of babe-e-quam in this centre of Pakistani democracy I commit, on behalf of the prime minister and this  Parliament to end child stunting in Pakistan by 2020”.



Special initiatives

The government has allocated Rs11.5 billion for special initiatives in the health sector and Rs37 million for the enhancement of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination in ICT infrastructure.

With cases of polio falling from 93 when the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) took over in 2013, to just one so far in 2018, the government said it was allocating Rs7.835 billion for the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI). This includes provincial share as well.

“Even after devolution of health function to provinces, the Federal Government cannot abdicate itself from responsibilities in this sector,” Ismail said during the budget speech.

A further Rs3 million has been allocated for the tuberculosis control programme for the Federally Administered Areas (Fata), Giligit-Baltistan (G-B) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Some Rs58.8 million has been pledged for the treatment of poor cancer patients of Islamabad, Fata, G-B, and AJK.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 28^th, 2018.