Daily Times

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Sania Nishtar Monday released a series of 40 beneficiaries centered instructional videos on twitter to provide guidance to the public about Ehsaas Kafaalat program.

The payments to new Ehsaas Kafaalat beneficiaries who are being enrolled through the ongoing Ehsaas survey commenced last week.

These instructional videos will provide information and guidance to the public, facilitating them to participate in Ehsaas.

In the talking head videos, Dr. Nishtar has answered frequently asked questions (FAQs) in simple language.

The videos, in particular, describe the FAQs of the public, including details of new Ehsaas survey and outline process of enrolments and payments to new Kafaalat recipients. The video release is available on the official twitter handle of Dr. Nishtar; @SaniaNishtar.

“Through a set of instructional videos, I have responded to important queries and problems of disadvantaged populations who interact with me frequently on radio and social media”, Dr. Nishtar said.

“If the deserving can gain from this awareness content and are able to easily navigate the Ehsaas’ digital registration and payment system, then that is worth it. In this regard, I would like to make an appeal to people and stakeholders, help us reach out to a wider audience by rigorously disseminating and resharing this video compilation.”

The videos mainly highlight the fully computerized, apolitical, voluntary and cost-free nature of Ehsaas survey. New enrolment is linked to the readiness of the survey in each district.

The beneficiaries were being registered phase-wise via ongoing Ehsaas survey which is currently 70% complete countrywide and will be concluded by coming June.

The enumerators go at the doorstep to collect the data of households through an android tablet. Households can participate in the survey by sharing their CNICs and socio-economic information.

Once the survey is finalized in each district, registration desks are opened at Tehsil level to help the missed households in their self-registration under survey.

Beneficiaries being identified for enrolment through the new survey are given Rs. 2000 a month on an ongoing basis under Kafaalat. Cumulatively, seven million deserving households will be included in Ehsaas Kafaalat.

They will be paid a first installment of Rs. 12,000 for the period Jan – Jun 2021. Afterwards, beneficiaries will get quarterly payment of Rs. 6000 on a continuing basis. Ehsaas is also sending out an SMS to all new beneficiaries from 8171 confirming that they have been registered in Ehsaas and should digitally withdraw their payment after biometric verification. Subsequently, the official letter is also despatched.

In Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and Islamabad, beneficiaries can collect payment through biometric ATMs, designated retail shops and campsites of Habib Bank; and through Bank Alfalah across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Ehsaas Kafaalat is the government’s flagship social protection programme through which it provides monthly cash stipends of Rs. 2,000 and saving bank accounts to the poorest and marginalized women across the country.