KARACHI-Caretaker Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar has directed the Social Protection Department to develop and efficiently implement an overarching need-driven and rights-based cross-sectoral social protection strategy for the poverty-stricken districts, including katchiabadies and slum areas of Karachi.
“The poverty ratio in the katchiabadis, slum areas, and rural areas of Karachi is equally higher as of the rural areas of the province, therefore Karachi must be included in the social protection programme,” according to a statement issued from CH House on Monday.
He issued these directives while presiding over a meeting of the Social Protection Department to review its progress at the CM House. The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Dr Fakhre Alam, Vice Chairman Social Protection Board Haris Gazdar, Chairman P&D Shakeel Manijo, PSCM Hassan Naqvi, Secretary Finance Kazim Jatoi, Haris Gazdar, CEO Social Protection, Samiullah Shaikh.
Vice Chairman Haris Gazdar and CEO Samiullah Shaikh briefed the caretaker chief minister about the department and its programme launched by the government.
The CM was told that under the Sindh Social Protection Strategy an effective Management Information System (MIS) for the social registry has been developed. Under the programme, two feasibility studies - Food Security – Bhook Mitao- programme and the Benazir Women Agriculture Workers programme have been conducted.
MOTHER AND CHILD SUPPORT
Mother and Child Support Programme (MCSP) and nutrition conditional cash transfer has been launched. The programme in being implemented as a pilot MCSP in two districts- Tharparkar and Umerkot to enable uptake of maternal and child health services by vulnerable rural women. The pilot programme was initiated in May 2021 in four UCs and was scaled up to cover the entire districts of Tharparkar and Umerkot in May 2022. The CM was told that MIS has been established where 62,000 pregnant women have been enrolled and Rs165 million have been disbursed.
The meeting was told that a Rs48,300 million project for the Social Protection Delivery System has been launched with the assistance of the World Bank. The health partners including PPHI and the health department have started the services. The Strengthening Social Protection Delivery System has two components.