2.5 million beneficiary families given life insurance: BISP

Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) in collaboration with State Life Insurance Corporation has provided the facility of life insurance to its 2.5 million beneficiary families up till now, while the rest would be covered soon. Farzana Raja, addressing a press conference here on Friday said that comprehensive working and planning was being done since last one year to present this unique gift to the beneficiary families.
On the occasion, Shahid Aziz Siddiqui, Chairman State Life Corporation and Sher Khan, Secretary BISP signed an agreement to provide health insurance facility to BISP's registered beneficiary families. The pilot project of health insurance scheme is to be launched in Faisalabad District and would be extended to beneficiary families across the country subsequently.
Chairperson BISP said the pilot project under Health Insurance Scheme being launched in district Faisalabad would benefit 75,000 beneficiary families. She said the State Life Insurance has signed agreements with 6 hospitals from private sector in the district and was negotiating with government of Punjab to sign similar agreements with public sector hospitals.
Farzana Raja said the World Bank and German organisation GIZ was providing financial and technical support regarding health insurance scheme. She said BISP was established on the concept of social welfare three years back and now it has become a national asset for its services to the poor of the country. She said a considerable reduction in poverty could be expected as a result of this measure in 10 years.
Farzana said the beneficiary families were identified through parliamentarians in the first phase of the programme whereas, in the second phase, 7 million families were included in the programme as a result of poverty survey. The families excluded from the programme had more than 16.17 points on the scorecard and due to budgetary constraints; BISP could not retain them in the programme anymore. She said that the steps were taken to ensure more efficient and accurate beneficiaries' targeting system so that the most deserving can be benefited from the programme.
Farzana Raja added that Benazir Cards would also be provided to all beneficiary families till June 30 this year and the role of postmen would get eliminated. "Under the Waseela-e-Taleem initiative of the programme, more than one million children of beneficiary families will be enrolled in schools," Farzana Raja said.