Government Initiative.

• Author: Kazmi, S. Kamal Hayder

Byline: S. Kamal Hayder Kazmi

Pakistan inked MoU focusing on poverty alleviation with Bill Gates Foundation

Prime Minister Khan has launched a comprehensive Poverty Alleviation Program "Ehsaas" on 27th March, 2019 with its 4 focus regions and 155 policy actions to decline inequality, invest in people and uplift lagging districts. It was estimated that under this program, the government of Pakistan would allocate an extra amount of Rs.80 billion in Pakistan's social protection spending in the budget 2019-20 that would be raised to Rs.120 billion in 2021.

Presently, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BandMGF) has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Pakistan for its Ehsaas initiative on poverty alleviation. Prime Minister Imran Khan and Bill Gates, co-chair of the BandMGF, witnessed the signing ceremony as Special Assistant to PM on Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar and president of Global Development at BandMGF Dr Chris Elias inked the MoU in September 2019.

The BandMGF will assist the government of Pakistan with a range of activities, counting accelerating stunting reduction programs, supporting financial inclusion initiatives and investing in public health systems to enhance health and reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality. The foundation plans to spend about $200 million in Pakistan in 2020. Earlier, the meeting between Prime Minister Khan and Bill Gates and Chris Elias focused on Ehsaas and finding ways of its collaboration with BandMGF on funding, technical assistance, and assist of worldwide experts in enhancing health, nutrition and financial inclusion in Pakistan.

Sources recorded that Pakistan's ambassador to the United Nations Dr. Maleeha Lodhi, Adviser to the PM on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and Adviser on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood attended the meeting. It is also said that the new collaboration of the government with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is in continuation of the Foundation's more than decade-long work in Pakistan. The earlier programs have covered a range of shared development priorities, including polio eradication, financial inclusion, routine immunisation and maternal, neo-natal and child health. In a tweet, Gates said, "Ending poverty and achieving the SDGs requires a whole-of-government approach. Imran Khan and Sania Nishtar have...