Executive Directors at the World Bank have approved $600 million for the Crisis-Resilient Social Protection Program (CRISP) that will help the Pakistani government expand the Ehsaas Program. The Ehsaas Program is an initiative taken by Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan for poverty alleviation and to protect vulnerable households in Pakistan.
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, tens of thousands of families across Pakistan face economic hardship, particularly workers in the informal sector.
World Bank Country Director Najy Behassine, speaking about the project, said: “Such workers barely have savings to use in crises and they are not covered by existing social safety net program. This investment will enable Ehsaas program to develop a more efficient and adaptive social protection system for crises and resilience to future shocks.”
As per details, CRISP will facilitate the Ehsaas social protection programs so that aid may reach informal workers, particularly women through an innovative approach. It will provide a platform through which the government can rapidly respond to support the most affected households during an economic crisis.
“In the event of a crisis, a more flexible and dynamic social protection system can significantly reduce the time needed to respond to peoples’ needs as well as supporting a faster recovery,” said Amjad Zafar Khan, Task Team Leader for the Crisis-Resilient Social Protection program.
CRISP will also improve the capacity of the social registry to maintain up-to-date accurate household data and exchange data among social programs while providing greater beneficiary choice in the biometric payment systems.
