BISP has distributed Rs. 37.173 billion amongst 4.13 million beneficiaries in the exercise that began from 19th July 2023. Nearly 50% of beneficiaries have been served (46.23% to be exact till noon today). In just 3 hours of distribution 408,972 beneficiaries were served.
The disbursement shall continue till 6 PM today, explained the Director General Cash Transfer. Payments will also be made through retail network tomorrow and then resume from 4th of July after eid and Bank holiday.
There have been challenges including shifts in weather; from extreme heat to heavy rains in some areas. However, the biggest challenge for local administrations and BISP has been the payment system which is thru one bank and its nominated agents in designated provinces, he added. These agreements which gave exclusivity to banks were executed in October 2019 with HBL in Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan and Bank Alfalah for KP, AJK and GB. In the meanwhile 37 FIRs have been registered while 160 POS agents have been blocked. Actions against BISP employees and Police officials has been taken whereascontractual notices to banks have also been served.
There are a lot of complaints of deductions by Agents at retail site. Challenge is to minimize potential for cheating beneficiaries versus beneficiary convenience.
Most methods that allow closer monitoring by program also require travel by beneficiaries and possibility of crowding.
Therefore, this decades old system and the POS agent centric contracts are in process of being replaced with Social Protection Accounts for the beneficiaries.
The new pilot will make the service more dignified for clients, as well as less open to pilferage of beneficiary payments by unscrupulous agents, Explained the Secretary BISP. The Minister/ Chairperson is pursuing a payment model that is beneficiary centric and not dependent on POS agents. “Now we are at a stage that the pilot will be finally launched in first week of July 2023”, said the Secretary.
Trials had begun a few weeks earlier and now pilot will be formally launched shortly. The system will provide independence to the beneficiaries so that they are treated as regular bank clients rather than being constrained to go to retail agents or Camp sites. There will also be freedom of choice for beneficiaries to choose banks of their choice initially from 5 participating banks and then by October/ November when the contracts expires, the list will expand.
The major revamp of payment model will provide independence, transparency and choice to the beneficiary.
