Prime Minister Imran Khan has announced the country’s largest subsidy package worth Rs 120 billion. The package will be funded by the federal and provincial governments and provide a 30% discount on essential food items like cooking oil, pulses, and flour. The scheme will cater to the 130 million citizens that are currently in the lower-income demographic category.
The massive relief package is a subsidy under the Ehsaas Programme, a flagship social protection system launched by the incumbent government. The World Bank has lauded the Ehsaas Programme as one of the largest social protection systems in the world in terms of people covered. Recently, the Ehsaas programme completed a national database that helps to assess the financial status of people. Besides Ehsaas Program, the government also launched the Kamyab Pakistan Programme to provide interest-free business loans to four million families. The loan portfolio also consists of interest-free loans for house construction. This will help the government to meet its objective of providing affordable housing in Pakistan.
The launch of the mega-relief package comes as the country is struggling to contain its inflation rate. According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the CPI has posted a growth rate of 9.1% for October, which implies that prices of essential commodities will increase in the country. The mega-relief package aims to subsidize these items for the lower-income demographic.
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