BISP signs contract with HBL, Bank Alfalah for disbursement of financial assistance

• New payment solution has been designed in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of financial inclusion of poor women.
• It will enhance choices for the beneficiaries under Kifalat to collect cash grants through biometric verification at branchless banking retailers.
• The deep involvement of BISP Board in designing the system and oversight the Board provided to the procurement process was critical to the success of the process.

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection and Chairperson of Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) Dr. Sania Nishtar said that BISP signed a contract with Bank Alfalah and Habib Bank for the disbursement of financial assistance to deserving people.

Speaking at a signing ceremony, she said that the new biometric based payment solution developed by BISP through an open and consultative process was a great step to ensure good governance, transparency and efficiency in the payment mechanism for beneficiaries, said a press release.

She said that hiring of the new financial institutions through a transparent and open competitive bidding process was a significant development for improved service delivery and fraud prevention.

Dr. Nishtar said that the new payment solution has been designed in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of financial inclusion of poor women through one woman-one account as envisaged under the Government’s flagship Ehsaas Program.

It will enhance choices for the beneficiaries under Kifalat to collect cash grants through biometric verification at branchless banking retailers, an enhanced network of biometric enabled ATMs, campsites in remote areas and biometric enabled bank branches, she added.

Commenting on bidding process and lowest service charges quoted by the newly hired financial institutions, Dr. Sania said that the most significant feature of the new contracts is the saving of more than Rs. 2 billion in terms of bank service charges.

These savings will be channeled to further assist the poor families, she said. These savings are a reflection of the extremely thorough work that BISP Board and management did in conducting the procurement process.

The deep involvement of BISP Board in designing the system and oversight the Board provided to the procurement process was critical to the success of the process.

Commenting on features of disbursement system, Dr. Nishtar said that the new Biometric verification based payment solution loaded with advanced security features will help manage fraud in the disbursement system and ensure hassle free payment with no involvement of agents.

BISP after thorough review by its Board developed the BVS Payment Solution in consultation with all the stakeholders including Ministry of Finance (MoF), SBP, NADRA , PTA, Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) and Controller General of Accounts (CGA) with technical assistance from World Bank and Department for International Development (DFID).