ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday launched a Rs20 billion ($71.4 million) relief package for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in Pakistan, which aims to benefit 4 million families across the South Asian country.
Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, wherein Muslims abstain from food and drink from sunrise till sunset for a month. The holy month begins in Pakistan on Sunday.
While consumer inflation in Pakistan declined to 2.4 percent in Jan., compared to 24 percent in the same period last year, many Pakistanis say they are still feeling the pinch.
The Pakistani government has decided to provide Rs5,000 ($17.87) each to around 4 million families across the country to support them during the month of Ramadan, according to officials.
“It is a great blessing of Almighty Allah that inflation has dropped down in this Ramadan as compared to the last year. This year, around Rs20 billion have been allocated for this package, which would benefit 40 lakh families,” Sharif said at the launching ceremony.
“This would cover the whole of Pakistan, all provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir. This amount will be distributed among deserving people in all these areas through the digital [wallet] system.”
The development comes as Pakistan treads a long path to economic recovery after being stabilized under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program secured last year. An IMF mission is due to arrive in Islamabad next week for the first review of the facility.
Pakistan’s consumer inflation is expected to remain stable and maintain a downward trajectory compared to the previous year, the finance ministry said in its monthly economic outlook report on Feb. 27.
Sharif thanked all government institutions, international partners and tech companies for their efforts in distributing the funds among deserving families under the Ramadan relief package.
“All those tech companies, which provided their technical support in implementing this system, I thank them all,” Sharif said.
“I believe there are our foreign partners, also international partners, also sitting here. I would like to also thank them for their cooperation and partnership in this very noble cause.”