ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s Ramzan relief package remained underfunded after the cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) on Thursday approved Rs 6 billion less than the requested money due to “fiscal prudence”.
Against the total requirement of Rs29 billion to distribute Rs13,000 per family among the 2.1 million shortlisted families and operational expenditure, the ECC approved funds worth Rs23.5 billion, details released by the Finance Ministry after the meeting showed.
The ECC did not accept the Poverty Alleviation and Social Security Division’s request for approval of the necessary funds of Rs25 billion. The Finance Ministry informed the ECC that only the already budgeted amount of Rs19 billion should be approved while maintaining a balance between relief and fiscal prudence.
The ECC reviewed a summary submitted by the Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Security seeking approval of funds amounting to Rs 25 billion for the Prime Minister’s Ramzan relief package, according to the Finance Ministry statement.
“The Finance Division informed the committee that Rs19 billion had already been budgeted for the Ramzan package for the current financial year and the rest would be released as and when required,” it added.
The ECC accordingly approved the immediate release of Rs19 billion to enable an early start of disbursements, while accepting that any additional funds would be considered based on evolving needs and available fiscal space, the Finance Ministry said.
The government announced in the national press on Thursday that the Prime Minister had approved the Ramzan relief package of 38 billion rupees.
However, the 38 billion rupees includes the 10 billion rupees that are linked to the relief package, but are essentially part of Pakistan’s commitments to international lenders to increase stipends for beneficiaries of Benazir’s income support program every year.
The ECC’s decision to approve and disburse the funds in installments could delay the expected benefits as the government’s plan was to immediately release Rs 13,000 to 2.1 million identified families.
With the approval of 19 billion rupees from the Ramzan package budget allocation and another 3.5 billion rupees through reappropriation, the Poverty Alleviation Division is now short by around 6 billion rupees, according to government officials. They said the choice would be either to reduce the number of beneficiaries or the one-time cash allocation, or for the Finance Ministry to show willingness to pay the remaining amount.
The Finance Ministry claimed that the Rs29 billion was distributed across three components examined by the ECC, including additional technical grant, operational expenditure and regularization of re-appropriated funds. The ministry asserted that this financing structure ensures that the package has all the necessary resources while maintaining budgetary discipline and transparency in its implementation.
However, despite the addition of these three elements, the Prime Minister’s plan was still underfunded by 5.5 billion rupees.
A senior finance ministry official said there would be constant pre-audit and post-audit of the database of selected beneficiaries through various checks.
