The survey counters official figures that place incidence of poverty at 12%. DESIGN: MAHA HAIDER
Over 60% of the entire population of the province is living below the poverty line, states a ‘Poverty Survey’ carried out under the flagship of BISP, an internationally recognised social security programme.
More than 0.45 million families from total of 1.03 households in Balochistan have been declared eligible for financial support based on the survey results, said BISP Chairperson Farzana Raja during an exclusive interview with The Express Tribune.
Across the country, as many as 80 million people -45.7% of the entire population- live below the poverty line, states the survey. These results sharply negate the figures documented by an official survey that stated the incidence of poverty to be at 12%. The door-to-door poverty survey was launched to identify the lowest income households in order to provide them with Rs1, 000 monthly grants, said Raja.
Over 7.3 million families belonging to 27 million households have qualified for the financial support, she added.
In the province of Sindh, more than 2.52 million families from a total 6.48 households are declared poor by the survey. The count in Punjab is 2.62 million families belonging to 14.75 million households.
Around 1.33 million families of 3.61 households in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa have been termed poor by the survey. The figures in Azad Jammu and Kashmir are 0.1 million families from 0.5 million.
In Gilgit-Baltistan region 0.04 million families or 0.1 households and in FATA 0.19 million families or 0.38 million households were declared eligible for the grant under BISP.
When asked about BISP’s fate after the end of the incumbent government’s term, the minister said that the BISP is an independent authority. It was given a legal stature when the Parliament unanimously passed its bill, she added.
The government has in the last four years disbursed more than Rs146 billion to the deserving citizens of the country with complete transparency, she told The Express Tribune.
An amount of Rs1, 000 per family as monthly allowance is already being dispatched to over 7.29 million families that were identified by the poverty survey.
Talking about other initiatives of BISP, the minister shared that over 20.3 million women got registered with the National Database Registration Authority and were issued Computerised National Identities Cards with the help of the programme.
Other programmes working successfully under BISP include Waseela-e-Haq, Waseela-e-Rozgar, Waseela-e-Sehet and Waseela-e-Taleem, she added.
Budget/International support
About budget, she said Rs70 billion were allocated by the government in account of fiscal year 2012-13. Regarding international donors, she said around 300 million pounds were agreed upon for the beneficiaries. The United Kingdom, World Bank, Asian Development Bank and the United States are major contributors for this social security programme. Britain’s Department for International Development, USAID, China, Turkey and Iran also made contributions for the programme.
60% of the entire population is living under the poverty line in Balochistan, according to a BISP survey
27% households have qualified for financial support in the country
45.7% people of the entire population of the country are living below the poverty line
Over 7.3 million families of 27 million households have qualified for the financial support in the country.
- Over 2.52 million families of total 6.48 households declared poor who are living below the poverty line in Sindh,
- 2.62 million families of 14.75 million households in Punjab,
- 1.33 million families of 3.61 households in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa,
- 0.1 million families of 0.5 million households in Azad Jammu and Kashmir,
- 0.04 million families or 0.1 households in Gilgit-Baltistan
- 0.19 million families or 0.38 million households in FATA
Published in The Express Tribune, February 25th, 2013.
COMMENTS (11)
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poverty is state of mind there thousands of nomadic herding tribes in balochistan they dont have any modern facilty but they want to live the life of there forefathers
@Durrani: that is why the province should be made more independent within the boundries of pakistan we should sell the gas to punjab at higher prices instead of sindh both will be winners
@Munnnnna: may be you should visit it before passing irrational comments
@Admin : my message to Balochi brethren to work hard and make something out of themselves was so inappropriate that it was censored ? have a heart please !!!!
@Durrani very well said... and guess where all the nuclear bombs are kept safe? all in punjab! not any other province.
Would someone please advise the reason for the present Baluchistan govt to have 62 ministers. Since ZERO development is going on, what are these ministers doing ?
Secondly, why do the Baloch, at every election, vote in the Feudal Class, who have enriched themselves and kept the masses intentionallly illiterate ?
Look it is simple, you get what you vote for ......it's not rocket science.
@Durrani:
Loved that line
Balochistan is the most neglected province of Pakistan despite the biggest in terms of size and resources. I don't blame them for their current behavior as this is the result of frustration that Baluchis have been dealing with since the creation of Pakistan. They have been neglected in every sector - education, development, govt. jobs and what not. How can someone expect them to behave in a civilised manner when after last 65 plus years, the ordinary Baluchis don't have access to water let alone clean water??? The very basic thing that governments in the past and present have failed to provide.
The only solution for this problem is to give every province what it deserves based on the revenue it is generating NOT because the President or Prime Minister belong to a particular province. On the other hand, I would request my Baluchi brothers and sisters to make a wise decision in the upcoming elections for themselves and their children.
‘More than half of Balochistan is poor’
Balochistan is home to much of Pakistan's endowment of natural resources, they voluntarily joined Pakistan during its creation, and they were rewarded with their gas being pumped to Punjab, instead of blaming 'foreigners' perhaps people should introspect on why there is a Baloch Separatist movement in the first place, they have (as has the entire province) been raped and left to die. Pakistan and its Provinces exists to serve Punjab;
KPK & FATA: Buffer Zone, the Pashtoon people are expendable and to be kept ignorant so they can become suicide bombers to go and kill fellow Pashtoons in Afghanistan.
Kashmir: Water supply for Punjab
Balochistan: Gas Supply, Nuclear Testing Ground
Sindh: Enemies of Punjab, indian 'traitors' .etc
Punjab: The home of the 'true Pakistanis' who call for your hanging due to treason if you question the state. It would be landlocked patch of farmland were it not for the rest of the provinces. Also home of LeJ.
Under the current running of this country, all the provinces are better off without Punjab, except Punjab, is their a case for the continued existence of Pakistan? Yes, but currently it exists to serve (mostly) Punjab, and a nexus of corrupt elites from the rest of the provinces, it also murders its own people.
As per Govt of Pakistan, poverty is more wide spread ( great than 12% ) in USA than in Baluchistan. Great job. People should make lines outside Pakistan embassy, all over the world, applying for VISAS to migrate to Baluchistan.
Just like half the rest of the country. The only "rich" area in Pakistan is "the strip" between Rawalpindi-Lahore.