April 7, 2024. Dr Nishtar expressed gratitude to Minister Wale Edun for quickly implementing President Bola Tinubu’s directive to fulfill Nigeria’s cofinancing obligations for Gavi-supported vaccines. This crucial step will help prevent vaccine stock-outs and ensure continued immunisation efforts.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1776982635811578256
April 7, 2024. Dr Nishtar thanked Minister Mohammad Ali Pate for sharing his vision for Nigeria’s health sector and congratulated him on the progress made so far. She highlighted his emphasis on coordination, recognising its importance given Nigeria’s federated system and the involvement of numerous external stakeholders.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1776980613783843300
April 5, 2024. Dr Nishtar expressed her gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his warm welcome in Abuja and was inspired by his dedication to addressing vaccine equity and improving health outcomes in Nigeria. She reaffirmed Gavi’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s efforts and appreciated his encouraging words about Gavi’s global impact.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1776240165813440855
April 4, 2024. Dr Nishtar was deeply honoured to accept the “Commandeur de la Republique” award from President Faustin-Archange Touadera on behalf of Gavi and its Alliance partners. She expressed gratitude for this recognition and emphasised using the moment to drive further progress in expanding vaccine access and coverage in the Central African Republic.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1775810583780118882
April 4, 2024. Dr Nishtar expressed gratitude to President Faustin-Archange Touadera for his dedication to improving the health and wellbeing of the people of the Central African Republic. She emphasised the importance of his leadership in advancing health initiatives in the country.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1775659321969213719
April 4, 2024. Dr Nishtar met with members of civil society and community health workers, recognising their crucial efforts in reaching families in remote areas of the Central African Republic. She expressed deep appreciation for their commitment to advancing healthcare in hard-to-reach communities.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1775654400125518247
April 4, 2024. During the visit to the Central African Republic, Gavi announced it would be increasing support to reach all children with immunisation in the country.
April 3, 2024. Dr Nishtar met with the President of the National Assembly, Simplice Sarandji, to discuss the strong commitment of parliamentarians to improving vaccine access. She highlighted Gavi’s support in bolstering efforts to increase vaccine uptake in the country.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1775623156977238245/
April 2, 2024. Dr Nishtar had the honour of meeting H.E. Madam Brigitte Touadera, the First Lady of the Central African Republic, to present a token of appreciation on behalf of Gavi. She commended Madam Touadera’s leadership in the Organization of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD) and her dedication to advancing vaccine access as a key pillar of primary healthcare.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1775224547349844266
March 27, 2024. Dr Nishtar met with the Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell to highlight the UK’s vital contribution to global health security and its enduring partnership with Gavi. She expressed gratitude for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office’s ongoing support in promoting vaccine equity worldwide.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1773068918405345596
March 21, 2024. On her third day as Gavi CEO, Dr Nishtar engaged with key global health leaders and partners to discuss Gavi’s pivotal role in addressing worldwide health challenges. She thanked leaders from various organisations, including Minister Gennez, Jean Kaseya, and representatives from the EU, Spain, and Mauritania, for their insightful discussions.
March 21, 2024. Dr Nishtar attends a high-level event in Brussels representing Gavi alongside the EU Commission, African Union, and the African CDC.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1770850482145181838
March 19, 2024. Dr Nishtar is welcomed by Gavi at her first townhall in Geneva. She met with three different departmental teams who inspired her to support the strengthening of health systems.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1770139167781007676
February 13, 2024. Dr Nishtar emphasised that achieving gender equality in science, technology, and innovation is not only a matter of social justice, but also essential for fostering economic prosperity and sustainable development. https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1157125-speakers-emphasise-active-role-of-women-in-science-to-foster-economic-prosperity
April 2, 2024. On her first day in the Central African Republic, Dr Nishtar held discussions with Prime Minister Felix Moloua and Health Minister Pierre Somse, commending their dedication to immunisation. During her first trip as Gavi CEO to an implementing country, she reaffirmed Gavi’s commitment to expanding vaccine access across the nation.
https://x.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1775225342719885569
January 11, 2024. The Gavi Board announced the appointment Dr Nishtar as Chief Executive Officer of Gavi, effective March 18, 2024.
December 21, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar’s Emergency Treatment Bill was presented in the Senate Standing Committee on Health.
In her tweet, Senator Sania Nishtar thanked Members of the Senate Standing Committee on Health for their bipartisan support and for unanimously approving her Bill, which mandates free emergency medical treatment for all in public hospitals in the Islamabad capital territory. “Free emergency medical treatment is not only a moral imperative but also a matter of rights, with reference to the state-peoples’ relationship” she wrote.
https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1738218875857285258
December 16: 2023: During the recent meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice there was support from all parties for two of Senator Sania’s constitutional amendment Bills, aimed at amending articles 140A and 84 of the Constitution. The former is aimed at providing a basic constitutional framework to achieve the objective of devolution from the provincial to local level, whereas the latter is meant to rectify the process of approving supplementary budget grants.
https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1733707646245781642
December 4, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar virtually participated in the panel titled “Political & Economic Decisions Vs Costs of Health & Wellbeing” during the Advanced Tomorrow 2023 Singapore Summit, which focused on ‘Health and Wellbeing of Tomorrow’ – Revolutionising Healthcare, Wellness and Longevity in 21st Century. The discourse was around the main political and economic issues and barriers affecting healthcare outcomes globally and in countries of the South. The panel was moderated by Joan Hoey, Editorial Director, The Democracy Index at the Economist Intelligence Unit. Panel participants included Philippe Aghion, Professor of Economics at The London School of Economics and Political Science; Martin Guzman, Professor of Economics, and Former Minister of Economy of Argentina; Pranjal Sharma, author of The Next New: Navigating the Fifth Industrial Revolution; and Manuel Muniz, Provost of IE University in Madrid, Spain & Dean of the School of Global and Public Affairs.
December 3, 2023: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar participated in the first ever health day observed during COP 28. She spoke on a panel titled “breaking silos on climate sensitive diseases” during Last Mile forum. She spoke about measures and mitigates that the health sector needs to put in place to address the climate challenge, stressing on the need for new institutional arrangements, preemptive planning, and climate resilient investments in PHC. In a tweet after the event, she stated “The impact of climate change on health and health systems is staggering and alarming, and we have seen this playing out in Pakistan during the 2022 floods. I made a threefold call to action: first, health must work more closely with disaster, humanitarian, and social protection institutional arrangements. Second, we must mandate learnings from disasters and institutionalize pre-emptive planning for resilience and third, disruptive solutions are possible at scale for which technologies must be mainstreamed iteratively in processes and systems”
November 28, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar presented a Resolution in the Senate commemorating World Humanitarian Day. The Resolution was passed unanimously.
Humanitarian day resolution speech: Sania Nishtar
November 28, 2023: Senator Sania made a speech explaining how arbitrage is institutionalized in the wheat policy cycle; she outlined public policy measures to address wheat cycle challenges. The speech can be accessed here: Pakistan Wheat Crisis Senate Speech
Her oped on the subject can also be accessed here: https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1067410-wheat-policy-imperatives
November 28, 2023: Sania moved a motion in the Senate to amend Senate Rule 185 related to Conflict of Interest; in her speech she said “this was vital for promoting transparency”. However, Nishtar’s proposed amendment pertaining to conflict of interest safeguards, and aimed at institutionalising conflict of interest disclosure with a view to promoting public interest, transparency and good governance was vehemently opposed by the House. “I am deeply disappointed” she said afterwards in her tweet.
The speech can be accessed here: Conflict of Interest: Pakistan Senate
November 24, 2024: On 21–24 November 2023, 20 senior decision makers and influencers with extensive engagement with the UHC movement and in successfully elevating health onto the highest political agenda convened in person at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Centre in Italy. The aim of the convening was to ensure that we keep UHC high on the agenda. Three months following the UN High-level meeting on Universal Health Coverage (September 21), a closed-door retreat was a timely opportunity for frank discussions, stocktaking, and forward planning to develop a more strategic approach on how to leverage and engage the broader UHC movement mid-point to the SDGs.
November 20, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar participated in the invitation only conference on “International Politics, Leadership and Diplomacy for Health”. The conference was organized by Anders Nordstrom, former Ambassador for Global Health, Norway. The conference was part of a project which aims help expand a cadre of professionals competent in international politics and diplomacy, who can effectively navigate in the political landscape of health across the world. It represents a collaborative effort between two leading academic institutions, the Stockholm School of Economics (House of Governance and Public Policy) and Karolinska Institutet (Department of Global Public Health). Dr Sania Nishtar attended the meeting as an invited expert.
November 13, 2023: Senator Nishtar’s Resolution on COP 28 was not supported by the Senate majority today, purely for political reasons. In her tweet she stated “I was deeply disappointed yesterday, when the Senate majority rejected this Resolution urging the Government of Pakistan to develop food systems-related institutional mechanisms in line with Pakistan’s global commitments ahead of COP-28. On the one hand, climate change, Pakistan’s burgeoning population, the precarious water scarcity situation and the tendency to use arable land for lucrative housing schemes is creating serious food security challenges, and is threatening the future of generations, but on the other hand, our toxic political environment is not just hampering the country’s progress on such existential matters, it is also undermining Pakistan’s reputation globally”
November 13, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar’s Future Council Bill was presented in the Senate today and did not receive support. In a tweet she stated “Planning for the future is crucial for a country as it underpins growth, development, stability, and the overall well-being of its citizens. However, as opposed to this, future planning in Pakistan remains fragmented and heavily politicized; it is held hostage to the politics of patronage and policy vacillation which is inherent to change in government. The idea of “Pakistan’s Future Council” outlined in my Bill was to draw on the expertise of independent reputed experts and provide advice and recommendations to the government on long-term policy formulation particularly in the economic and related realms with conflict-of-interest safeguards on the one hand, and to evaluate progress towards achieving long term goals, on the other. Sadly, the Bill was thwarted due to the inherent tendency within the political system to undermine transparency, and accountability and the innate desire to keep political considerations supreme”
November 8, 2023: Senator Nishtar’s Bill titled “Pakistan Ehsaas Targeted Subsidies (Riayat) Program” has been forwarded to Senate Standing Committee for further deliberations. If this Bill passes and gets implemented, millions of families in Pakistan will be able to access a targeted subsidy on essential food items in these times of crippling 40% food inflation. In a tweet she stated “We had demonstrated the benefits and transparency of this program when it ran its operations in more than half the country from Feb-June 2022 and later in Punjab. For the sake of millions of poor families, I pray I succeed in getting this through!”
October 28, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar presented a Bill titled “A Bill to provide for the protection of street vendors’ livelihood” to the Senate Standing Committee, stressing once again that the institutional framework and regulatory arrangements embodied in the law draw on insights from a highly successful pilot and that if implemented effectively across federal and provincial jurisdictions, the law can be transformative for the livelihoods of over 10 million street vendors in Pakistan. “I hope such public interest and pro-poor legislation can draw on multi partisan support”, she said in her tweet.
October 18, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar was the only Pakistani speaking at the World Health Summit 2023 in Berlin this week. She spoke at the Keynote panel along with co-panellists, the German Minister of Health, Prof. Karl Lauterbach, the Brazilian Minister of Health, Nisia Veronica Trindade Lima, Prof. Ilona Kickbusch and other colleagues. The Summit commemorated the 75th anniversary of #WHO, which as the world’s only multilateral agency in health is critically needed but it’s weaknesses must be bridged.
On another panel, she joined Chris Elias, President of the BMGF and Loyce Pace, Assistant Secretary for Global Health, USA; they deliberated on women’s health issues and the need for a holistic approach to promote gender equality and the right to health throughout women’s lives.
September 6, 2023: A commentary co-authored by Senator Sania Nishtar in The Lancet, makes an important case: “Health Equity and Gender Equality provides evidence that health and gender equality offer distinctive advantages to promoting peaceful societies”. This commentary is part of the
“The Lancet Commission on Peaceful Societies”. Read here:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)01795-6/fulltext
September 25-27, 2023: A meeting of The Lancet Evidence Based Implementation Commission in Global Health was held in Chappel Hill from September 25-27, 2023. The meeting was hosted by Professor Herbert Peterson, Distinguished Professor of OBGYN and was attended by the full Commission.
The mandate of the Commission is to assess the current status of the generation and use of evidence for implementation and then create a blueprint for rapidly accelerating progress in evidence-based implementation in global health – with the goal of bridging the gap between the development of proven lifesaving and life-enhancing interventions and their full and effective use, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Senator Sania Nishtar attended the meeting as one of the Commissioners of the Lancet Evidence Based Implementation Commission in Global Health
September 21, 2923: Senator Sania Nishtar and former Prime Minister Imran Khan publish a paper in Lancet Global Health about the need to scale up social protection, universally, drawing lessons from Pakistan’s flagship program, Ehsaas.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(23)00354-6/fulltext?rss=yes
September 21, 2023: The High-Level meeting on Universal Health Coverage was a seminal event, and one of the highlights of the United Nations General Assembly, 2023. As part of the High-Level meeting, a multistakeholder panel was held with a focus on “Aligning our investments for health and well-being in a post-COVID world”. Dr Sania Nishtar was spoke on the panel about the role of Parliamentarisms in catalyzing investments for health. The text of her speech can be accessed here. The High-Level meeting was hosted by the President of United Nations General Assembly, Dennis Francis.
September 19, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar was one of the keynote speakers at the 9th Parliamentary forum on Population, hosted by the Population Council in Pakistan in Pakistan. “Pakistan’s growing population is one of the biggest human security challenges, the country faces”, she said.
September 13, 2023: Accomplished and emerging leaders gathered at Imperial College London to discuss current demands for global health leadership, leveraging their experience in dealing with challenges in their respective contexts, and pursuing transformative health system change. The roundtable emphasised the need for innovative, equitable and inclusive leadership approaches as the global health landscape evolves. The Roundtable was organized by the George Institute for Global Health, Imperial College Business School, Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, and National University of Singapore. Speakers included Rt. Hon. Helen Clark, Dr Richard Horton, Senator Dr Sania Nishtar, Dr Ebere Okereke, Afifah Ismat Rahman-Shepherd and Prof. Helena Legido-Quigley.
September 13-14, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar attended the first meeting of the NUS-Lancet Pandemic Readiness, Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Commission. The Commission is co-chaired by Rt. Hon. Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand; Senator Sania Nishtar, and Professor Helena Quigley Legido. The NUS PRIME Commission) aims to establish an independent Monitoring and Evaluation mechanism that assesses countries’ preparedness for and responses to pandemics. The Commission aims to redefine “health security” using a new framework and will offer a new monitoring framework based on a new set of principles and perspectives.
August 31, 2023: Sania Nishtar attended the law and justice committee meeting of the Senate where she presented two Constitutional Amendments—Amendment to Article 140-A (reform of the local government system) and Amendment to Article 84 (reform in the budget process)
August 25, 2023: Sania Nishtar spoke at the “Local Government Forum” which was held at LUMS Lahore. She explained the rationale behind the recent constitutional Amendment to Article 140-A moved by her in the Senate.
August 19, 2023:
July 27, 2023: Sania Nishtar publishes a comment on Pakistan’s exploding population in the News International. The Oped can be accessed here
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1093830-the-population-denominator
July 24, 2023: The Senate passed a Resolution unanimously on Population control. This resolution was tabled by Senator Sania Nishtar.
The links to Urdu translation of recent articles can be accessed here:
– Where no questions are asked
– Wheat policy imperatives
– Who suffers if Pakistan defaults
– What the budget should have been
– A crisis can be an opportunity
June 27, 2023: A webinar was organized as a kick-off for the Hiroshima G7 Global Health Follow-up Initiative. This Follow-up Initiative is expected to serve as a driving force toward implementing commitments of past G7s for strengthening resilience to future pandemics, identifying the challenges at the end of Japan’s presidency, and passing the G7 baton to Italy. The primary objectives of the webinar are to 1) invite diverse actors in global health to collect their reflections on the 2023 G7’s agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR)/resilient health systems, and discuss possible actions to implement the G7 commitments (including those made by past G7s). The event was organized by Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE) in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), the International Pandemic Preparedness Secretariat (IPPS), and the Wellcome Trust. Dr Sania Nisthar spoke at the event alongside Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Chair, Hiroshima G7 Global Health Follow-up Advisory Committee, and former Minister of Health underscored in her talk that UHC and health security are two intertwined goals, they are the two sides of the same coin to protect everyone, everywhere, especially disadvantaged populations.. #UHCHLM #UHC2030
June 23, 2023: Sania Nishtar attended the first in person meeting of the “Lancet Commission on Evidence-Based Implementation in Global Health”, in her capacity as a commissioner. The theme of the Commission centers on “Achieving Justice in Implementation” and its introductory details can be accessed in this Oped. https: //www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)00870-X/fulltext
June 21, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar said in a statement that she was honoured to co-chair “The NUS-Lancet Pandemic Readiness, Implementation, Monitoring, and Evaluation Commission” Sania Nishtar, Helen Clark, a former prime minister of New Zealand, and Professor Helena Legido Quigley will co-chair the commission. Access the article that the co-chairs and Richard Horton, Editor of the Lancet, co-published in The Lancet to introduce the Commission here: https://t.co/pD5mtGueYV. I appreciate your support of evidence-based medicine.
June 20, 2023: Sania writes in the News International outlining how it was entirely possible to espouse a double bottom line budget approach balancing expansion of welfare spending and dispensation of relief with evidence of a commitment to structural reform, austerity measures and fiscal discipline. The Oped can be accessed here: https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1082463-what-the-budget-should-have-been
June 16, 2023; Sania Nishtar joins Ole Petter Ottersen, Rhoda Wanyenze, Benoit Miribel, and Detlev Ganten to write an Oped in the British Medical Journal calling the EU to step up its actions and leadership on global health. The Oped can be accessed here: https://www.bmj.com/content/381/bmj.p1359
June 13, 2023: Sania Nishtar was one of the key speakers at a webinar chaired by former Prime Minister Imran Khan where she spoke about the need for a double bottom line budget strategy in view of Pakistan’s recent economic crisis. The full recording of the webinar can be accessed here: youtu.be/L6vYpXnZARg
June 12, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar’s speech in the senate on the budget can be accessed here: youtu.be/U0qCGhOuoHE
May 27, 2023: Sania publishes in the News International on the state of Pakistan’s economy and its impact for the poor. Access article here: https://t.co/PsSXAu2x6Z
May 24, 2023: in a public message relayed via twitter, Sania Nishtar solicited applications from needy students. “I will share your information with prospective donors” she said, adding “I will try my best to help you”. The Scholarship portal can be accessed here https://t.co/nMVTCfXmop
May 17, 2023: Dr Sania Nishtar participated in the Asian Parliamentary Association Standing Committee on Economic and Social Development’s meeting, which was held in Bahrain on May 17. On the sidelines of the meetings, she also held many bilateral meetings with the delegations of Iran, Qatar, Indonesia, and Turkey to explore cross country learning in the social sectors.
May 13, 2023: Sania Nishtar publishes an Op-ed in The News International about the multiple crises Pakistan is facing and offers solutions for the way forward. Read here A crisis can be an opportunity (thenews.com.pk)
May 13, 2023: Dr Sania Nishtar gave the keynote talk at the launch ceremony of the Lives and Livelihoods Fund during the Islamic Development Bank Annual Meetings 2023. The launch event happened during the Lives and Livelihoods Fund development colloquium which was a discussion forum engaging high profile speakers to invest in strategic partnerships to invest in human development.
May 12, 2023, Helena Legido-Quigley, Helen Clark, Sania Nishtar, as co-chairs of the new PRIME lancet Commission along with Richard Horton, editor of The Lancet publish a commentary in the Lancet titled, “Reimagining health security and preventing future pandemics: the NUS–Lancet Pandemic Readiness, Implementation, Monitoring, and Evaluation Commission. The commentary can be accessed here https://t.co/pD5mtGueYV
May, 3. 2023. Sania Nishtar joins other UHC Political Advisors as a co-author in the Lancet piece which can be accessed here: Realising the right to health for all people—UHC is the umbrella to deliver health for all. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(23)00202-4
May 2, 2023. Sania Nishtar has released a video strongly protesting the government’s decision to auction street vending stalls.
April 30, 2023. Sania Nishtar has released a video strongly protesting the government’s decision to close Panahgahs (Shelter homes) for daily wage workers
April 27, 2023. Sania Nishtar has published a new Op Ed in the News International outlining https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1064307-flood-funds-and-telethons
8th April 2023: While chairing the States & Frontier Region Senate Sub-committee in Peshawar, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar reviewed progress in relation to systems mandated by the committee including 1) biometrics for attendance; 2) geotagging for veracity of development schemes; 3) e-Procurement for transparency in procurements.
7th April 2023: Pakistan’s senate passes a Resolution to commemorate WHO’s contributions. Presented by Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, the resolution recognized WHO’s critical role in advancing health globally by improving disease prevention and care, addressing health disparities, and advocating for investments in sustainable health systems for all.
March 31, 2023, Senator Sania Nishtar joined the strategy retreat of the WHO Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research in London from March 29-31. The purpose of the retreat was to review the context in which the Alliance operates, current health trends and priorities, gaps in policy and systems research as well as the landscape of global health research and to provide insights on a way forward. The retreat was chaired by Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand.
March 29, 2023: Senator Sania Nishtar joined as a speaker at an event held at the UK House of Parliament. This event was hosted by Baroness Finlay head of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Global Health and the Chatham House Commission for Universal Health. The event was titled Crisis as a catalyst: Reforming Universal Health Coverage for 2030 and beyond”. Other speakers included Rt Hon Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand; former Jeanette Vega, Minister of Chile; Rob Yates and Ayoade Alakija.
24th March 2023: In a recently published op-ed in The News International, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar has accentuated that instead of leveraging the infrastructure of Ehsaas Rashan Riayat- an existing, tried and tested targeted subsidy programme, the present government chose to implement an entirely new, parallel programme, without due diligence and evidence-based design. Interim governments of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have recently launched a free atta (flour) initiative. This initiative, which aims to give families some relief from unprecedented food inflation during Ramadan is seriously flawed in its design.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1053264-subsidy-gone-wrong
14th March 2023: Lancet has published a comment, “It is time for ambitious, transformational change to the epidemic countermeasures ecosystem”. This is authored by Helen Clark, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, Marcos da Silva Freire, Petro Terblanche and other members of the group.
https://thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)00526-3/fulltext
12th March 2023: Dr Sania Nishtar was invited to keynote the Convocation ceremony of Namal University in Mianwali, Pakistan. Namal University is a one of a kind University where the expenses of more than 95% of the students are underwritten by the university. In her address, she stressed upon the importance of contribution to nation building during the current crises which Pakistan is facing.
10th March 2023: A ceremony was held in I-10 Markaz Islamabad wherein cash grant worth Rs. 2.4 million was distributed among 28 Ehsaas Rehribaans. Their vending carts had been destroyed by the government and authorities in Islamabad. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar was the chief guest at the event. The cash assistance for Rehribaan was donated by Pakistanis in Dubai and fundraising was done by Dr. Hadia.
1st March 2023: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar was invited to keynote the 14th Health Science Research Academy. The event was hosted by Aga Khan University. Dr. Sania shared lessons and experiences from Ehsaas programme.
27th February 2023: A documentary titled, “Ehsaas 2047” has been released. Narrated by Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar and filmed on locations across Pakistan, the documentary centers on beneficiaries of various components of Ehsaas Programme and gathers testimonials from them focusing on the benefits of specific interventions.The documentary can be accessed here: https://www.ehsaas2047.com/documentaries
23rd February 2023: Ehsaas 2047 documentary got screened at the President’s House in the presence of the Honorable President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Dr. Arif Alvi. The documentary captured Pakistan’s historic effort towards creating a welfare state through Ehsaas programme.
21st February 2023: In an Op-ed published in The News International, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar shared insights on how Ehsaas built an ecosystem to enable targeting of subsidies to benefit the poor, rather than the untargeted trillions from which the elite currently benefit. She emphasized that far from dismantling it, now more than ever we need to consolidate Ehsaas’ system.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1042625-targeting-subsidies
21st February 2023: Project Syndicate has published an article penned by Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar on digital payments, and how they can serve as the backbone on which new systems can be built: systems that deliver, and where transparency and accountability are hardwired. The article can be accessed here:
17th February 2023: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar joined the Bellagio consultation on “Advancing a new approach to pandemic tools as common goods”. The meeting was chaired by Helen Clark. Discussions took place with experts, academics and civil society organizations in order to course correct. Dr. Sania shared insights from the developing world.
14th February 2023: “At a time when households are struggling due to record inflation, destroying Ehsaas Rehribaans’ source of income is cruel and unwarranted by the present government. The city administration must immediately cease this senseless destruction of vending carts in the name of anti-encroachment. Both the city administration as well as the ministry must compensate these vendors for the damage and reinstate their licenses. The poor must not become collateral damage amidst political rivalries”, highlights Dr. Sania in an op-ed published in The News International.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1040410-ehsaas-rehribaan-stalled
12th February 2023: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar was invited to the Nobel Forum Stockholm to participate in the deliberations on operationalizing the new EU Global Health Strategy. The forum was hosted by Ole Petter Ottersen, President of Swedish Medical University Karolinska Institutet. Dr. Sania spoke at the closing plenary.
6th February 2023: Expressing deep concern that there will be “no further entries” in the Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship program, a resolution was moved in Senate by Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar. The resolution got rejected in the House merely due to political rivalries. Dr. Sania made a speech in favour of continuation of Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship in the Senate. Watch here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkV3nQ_Mbfs
4th February 2023: The street vendor carts installed under the Ehsaas programme were destroyed by the present government and authorities in I-10 Markaz of Islamabad at 3 am. Early morning, Senator Dr. Sania visited the site and met with victimized Ehsaas Rehribaans. Condemning this act, Dr. Sania said, “What the city administration did cannot be justified on any grounds. Instead of renewing the vendors’ one-year licenses, they reneged on their commitment to them.”
2nd February 2023: The UHC Movement Political Advisory Panel met to discuss the UN High-level meeting on universal health coverage (UHC) and how to strengthen a coherent health agenda. Being a member of the advisory panel, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar spoke at the meeting.
URL: https://www.uhc2030.org/about-us/governance/uhc-movement-political-advisory-panel/
31st January, 2023: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar made a speech in the Senate about the lack of respect for the policy process, the disregard for evidence in policy making and the lack of meaningful accountability in decision making as being the core determinants of most of our failures. Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk5LUsJcvAo
URL:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk5LUsJcvAo
26th January 2023: Dr. Sania spoke on the state of Pakistan’s economy at the Senate session. She presented unbiased analysis of our economy and suggested realistic solutions to tackle the issue. Watch here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFIUyUjxdo4
URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFIUyUjxdo4
23rd January 2023: “Over the last 5 months, we enacted the Punjab Ehsaas Act, guaranteeing govt assistance to all under the poverty line & rolled out Ehsaas Rashan Riayat across Punjab. Given crippling inflation, it is imperative the caretaker government continues these initiatives”, said Former Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar while taking to twitter after the dissolution of Punjab Assembly.URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1617565128534228994
21st January 2023: Senator Dr Sania Nishtar was tasked by former PM Imran Khan to oversee the collection and distribution of funds for victims of floods in Pakistan. She had revealed that Khan’s live telethons received pledges amounting to Rs. 15 billion, of which Rs. 4.6 billion have been received so far. But rival politicians accused Sania Nishtar of exaggerating the amount collected till then. Later, Geo Fact-Check confirmed that Dr. Sania’s statement was accurate. Documents shared by Dr. Sania with Geo Fact Check showed that PTI received Rs. 4.8 billion out of the Rs. 15 billion pledges made, in three live telethons held by Imran Khan last year.
17th January 2023: A meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on States and Frontier Regions was held. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar joined the meeting. She lauded that the committee is spearheading a transparency initiative, which amongst other things entails tracking all development schemes with pre, during & post progress images archived.
URL: https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1615310286193569792
17th January 2023: Former Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas programme, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar tweeted a letter dated 5th January 2023 that she wrote to Managing Director, Utility Stores Corporation (USC) to participate in Punjab Ehsaas Rashan Riayat. In a tweet, she urged that with unprecedented inflation, it’s become critical for USC to join Ehsaas Rashan Riayat Program and offer a targeted subsidy on commodities through their ~1800 stores in Punjab.
URL: https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1615354090413760517
17th January 2023: Many Kiryana merchants participating in the Punjab Ehsaas Rashan programme had complained about geolocation issues on the Ehsaas Kiryana app. “We are addressing it on an urgent basis”, said Dr. Sania in an instructional video. Watch here. https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1615355678331400192
URL: https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1615355678331400192
10th January 2023: Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas programme, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar called on Chief Minister Punjab and briefed him on the progress of Punjab Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme. Other meetings included meeting of Punjab Ehsaas Rashan Riayat steering committee, a visit to the call center and several other programme reviews.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1612862682826248225
1st January 2023: In a televised programme, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar together with Chairman PTi, Imran Khan gave a detailed update on Imran Khan’s telethon flood funds’ disbursement. Slide deck can be accessed here. https://www.insaf.pk/notification/telethon-flood-donations-utilization-status
Video can be watched here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZg4aE-KLX0
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1609599730287316993
24th December 2022: With Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar in chair, several meetings were held regarding Ehsaas Rashan Riayat (targeted commodity subsidies) and Ehsaas Tahafuz (health financing) Punjab Program and Chairman Imran Khan’s Flood Relief Telethon Funding.
URL: https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1606705993496272897
24th December 2022: At the LUMS panel on “Fostering Inclusive Development”, Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas programme, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar stressed that the pathway to addressing inequality is not just through inclusive-growth centered approaches, but that a range of policy interventions other than inclusive growth can also narrow inequalities.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1606708937184665601
17th December 2022: Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar met young girls and women at one of the 300 plus schools for disabled children run by the government of Punjab. She was touched by their spirit and resilience. She assured that she would be recommending enhancement of budgets to support infrastructure to better serve students with disabilities.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1603952131802898432
4th December 2022: In a tweet, Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar announced that the Canteen Stores Department (CSD) stores will serve Punjab Ehsaas Rashan Riayat beneficiaries. 8 million deserving families of Punjab will benefit from this programme. “I hope Utility Stores Corporation will soon join Ehsaas Rashan Riayat for public interest”, urged Dr. Sania.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1599309777867198465
2nd December 2022: In interest of transparency, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar released an update on disbursements of flood relief housing compensation among flood affectees. She shared that Rs. 1.2 billion has been contributed by Chairman Imran Khan’s telethon flood relief funds received in the CM KPK Flood relief fund. Further details at https://rc.kpitb.gov.pk/landing-dashboard.
URL: https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1598629181977513985
30th November 2022: The annual convocation for the class of 2018-19 was hosted by Khyber Medical College in Peshawar. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar was the guest of honour. “I am deeply humbled to have been invited to my alma mater Khyber Medical College. Congratulations to all graduating students and award winners!”, said Dr. Sania.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1603951576745480192
21st November 2022: After the digital survey was completed last week, the financial assistance was released for 55,452 flood-affected houses in Punjab and the delivery of relief funds of Rs. 9.6 billion rupees began provincewide, in which 2 billion was provided by the flood telethon and 7.6 billion by the Punjab government. In a ceremony, CM Punjab and Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar met with the eligible families and inaugurated the payments.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1594751416349884417
November 15, 2022: Dr Sania Nishtar joined a high level panel at the “Future of Healthcare Week Asia” in Singapore. Organized by The Economist Intelligence Unit, this session titled “Removing silos—collaborating for success in health” featured a discussion around collaboration within the context of the Pandemic.
12th November 2022: A steering Committee meeting of Punjab Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme was held in Lahore. Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar chaired the meeting. Preparations for the launch of the Punjab Ehsaas are underway on fast-track basis for the past two weeks and are currently in the final stages. Alongside the above, daily online review meetings and a workshop was also held at Holy Family Hospital Rawalpindi to prepare for the launch of Punjab Ehsaas Tahafuz.
URL:https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1591448525195427845
19th October 2022: The Punjab Assembly has passed the “Punjab Ehsaas Programme Bill 2022”. The Bill was moved by Chairperson Punjab Ehsaas, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar. With this bill, Pakistan’s largest province (Population over 110 million) commits itself to universal social protection, a seminal undertaking to address rising inequality, post COVID, inflationary and climate related stresses.
URL: https://twitter.com/SaniaNishtar/status/1582742371845840897
September 21, 2022: Sania Nishtar virtually joined the meeting of the SUN Lead Group as a member of the lead group. This meeting was held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York at the UNICEF headquarter.
September 9, 2022: Dr Sania Nishtar keynoted the 16th Singapore Public Health & Occupational Medicine Conference virtually. This year’s conference, “Reinventing Health for All”, looked at the progress in the field of healthcare, as well as recalibrating to reflect what other health issues deserve more attention and the challenges that lie ahead in addressing them, particularly in view of the COVID situation.
July 7, 2022: As a member of the Commonwealth human rights working group, Dr Sania attended its second meeting.
June 27-28: The Government of Sweden organized a meeting titled “From one health crisis to the next – or not? Taking stock and moving forward”. Dr. Sania was amongst a selected group of experts invited to the meeting.
June 24, 2022: The Aspen Institute organized a session on Decolonizing Global Health during its annual Aspen Ideas Festival. Dr Sania spoke at the session. Full session can be downloaded here:
June 23, 2022: A key public event of the world bank centered on the role of human capital building in relation to recovery from COVID 19 in today’s world. Speakers included David Malpass, President of the World Bank, Samia Suluhu Hassan, President of Tanzania, Mary Pangetsu, Malala Yusufzai, Amina Mohammad, Dr Morena Makhona, Gostavo Beliz, and Sania Nishtar. Speakers reiterated that protecting and investing in people is central to sustainable resilience.
Watch here:
June 20, 2022: Dr Sania’s Speech in the Senate about the Budget 2022/23 can be accessed here
June 8, 2022: Dr. Sania Nishtar has been invited to join the Chatham House Commission for Universal Health. The aim of the Commission for Universal Health is to encourage and inspire political leaders to launch universal health reforms emerging from the COVID-19 crisis. The Commission is charged with identifying countries with significant potential in the wake of the pandemic to adopt universal health reforms in a way that addresses universal health coverage (UHC) and health security for all and supports healthy lifestyles and population wellness. The Commission is currently made up of 37 commissioners, two co-chairs and a secretariat, and is co-chaired by President Kikwete and Helen Clark
May 23, 2022: Session on pandemic preparedness on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly Dr Sania attended a session on pandemic preparedness hosted by McKinsey.
The panel discussion provided an opportunity for senior experts to reflect on their in-depth experiences leading responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr Sania shared her experience about Ehsaas Emergency Cash.
May 12, 2022: For many women in South Asia, accessing economic opportunities remains a challenge despite decades of economic development in the region. Deeply rooted social norms account for a large share of these gaps. Hans Timmer hosted a panel discussion to dig deep on these issues. A short presentation on the main findings of the South Asia Economic Focus 2022: Reshaping Social Norms about Gender: A New Way Forward, was also presented. View here
April 11, 2022: Following the Prime Minister losing the vote of confidence in Parliament, the Cabinet has been dissolved. Dr Sania Nishtar was given a farewell by the staff of the Poverty Alleviation Ministry. Her unprecedented contributions were richly lauded by all.
April 19, 2022: The Center for Global Development hosted a conversation on how the IMF and World Bank can build on their track record in tobacco, alcoholic and sugary beverages taxes to help low in middle income countries bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic. The panel included Mario Mansour, IMF; Mamta Murthi, World Bank; Karambu Muthaura, Government of Kenya; and Sania Nishtar, Government of Pakistan. Amanda Glassman, Executive Vice President, Center for Global Development was the moderator.
April 1, 2022 – Islamabad: The third meeting of Steering Committee for Ehsaas Rashan Riayat took place at the Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division (PASSD). Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM chaired the meeting. Members of the steering committee approved the adoption of new supply driven model for implementation of Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme to ensure that the programme benefits 20 million deserving families. “In order to reach even more beneficiaries and maximize impact of Ehsaas Rashan Riayat for up to 20 million families, Ehsaas is now introducing a new “supply driven” model to enroll all families currently surveyed in the Ehsaas National Socioeconomic Registry database and under Proxy Means Test 44 for the Ehsaas Rashan Riayat, without them having to register for the programme. All members of eligible families will be sent an SMS. Any member from the family with a CNIC and SIM registered in the name of a family member can then avail the subsidy.
April 1, 2022 – Islamabad: In a meeting held at Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM officially opened the portal of Ehsaas Tahafuz (https://ehsaastahafuz.pass.
March 31, 2022 – Islamabad: “Ehsaas Raabta” app has been launched with beneficiary centered information about the programme. The mobile app is available on the Google Playstore at this link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=pk.gov.ehsaas.sub_kay_liye. “Ehsaas Raabta” app guides a common man about various benefits and services being offered through different programmes of Ehsaas. Instructional information in Urdu allows users to understand information of Ehsaas programmes and initiatives. Through the app, anyone intending to know about his entitlements for various benefits under Ehsaas will go to the Ehsaas 8171 web portal section. Once the QR code mentioned on the backside of Ehsaas Card is scanned, the app will inform the user about the whole range of entitlements for his/her family under Ehsaas. Instructional video can be watched here.
March 31, 2022 – Islamabad: Work on National Data Exchange Portal (NDEP) has formally concluded. NDEP for the Ehsaas’ National Socioeconomic Registry is one of the six main pillars of One Window Ehsaas. With NDEP, the implementing agencies of Ehsaas will be empowered to ascertain what benefits an individual or a family is getting by just keying in the CNIC number of an individual. More importantly, the benefits which each family and individual is getting from each implementing agency will also be visible to all agencies under Ehsaas programme. “In the past, there was no way of one government agency knowing what support an individual or a family was getting from another government agency. Some families with connections and influence were getting multiple benefits and other more deserving ones were getting none”, said Dr. Sania.
March 31, 2022 – Islamabad: Federal Cabinet has approved the Ehsaas Catastrophic Health Expenditure Policy and Ehsaas Tahafuz through circulation. Through this policy, Ehsaas Tahafuz, has been approved, which is a fund-based health financing system. Ehsaas Tahafuz will complement the insurance-based Sehat Sahulat programme to ensure the universal health coverage and protect people from Catastrophic Health Expenditure. Extensive two-year-long work has been done on Ehsaas Tahafuz which is country’s first shock-oriented precision safety net. Ehsaas Tahafuz is primarily premised on coverage principles to complement government’s existing Sehat Sahulat programme and plug in any gaps. “Ehsaas Tahafuz will run as per the parameters outlined in this policy to complement Sehat Sahulat to ensure efficient use of public resources and to build synergies between complementary programmes”, said Dr. Sania Nishtar while chairing the review meeting of Ehsaas Tahafuz.
March 29, 2022 – Islamabad: Ehsaas Kafaalat payments for the period Jan to Jun 2022 are underway nationwide. Prime Minister has raised the six-monthly stipend amount of Ehsaas Kafaalat from Rs.12,000 to Rs.14,000. In a video message, Dr. Sania Nishtar has caveated of strict actions being taken against agents involved in deductions from disbursements of Ehsaas beneficiaries. Warning agents to refrain from deductions, Dr. Sania reaffirmed that all those involved in deductions will be dealt with strictly. Highlighting important pointers regarding defrauding activities, Dr. Sania further emphasized on three things: Firstly, all Ehsaas Kafaalat beneficiaries should get full payment of Rs. 14,000. Beneficiaries whose children are enrolled in Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif; their stipend amount is more than Rs. 14,000. Secondly, she asked beneficiaries not to submit CNICs to retailers prior to payment. Thirdly, she urged beneficiaries, “Beware of agents who may try to deny payments at the time of biometric verification asking recipients to come later some other day.” Cautioning agents, Dr. Sania also referred to Quranic verses about the importance of honesty. Full video can be watched here.
March 28, 2022 – Islamabad: The tenth steering committee meeting of Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship programme took place at the Higher Education Commission. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM and Chairman HEC, Dr. Tariq Banuri co-chaired the meeting. The steering committee discussed policy questions, financial impacts, sustainability features and refinements needed in light of the assessment study conducted under the Ehsaas umbrella. Detailed deliberations were held on findings of the study. The assessment covered 35 public sector universities across all four provinces and ICT. Under the study, the eligibility criteria for selection of students by the respective Institutional Scholarship Award Committees of the universities was gauged. The study revealed that the programme provided level playing field for students from low-income households nationwide. Students with a monthly family income below the threshold of Rs. 45,000 were eligible to apply, and scholarships were given out based on need-cum-merit basis. Results of the study also highlighted the need for categorization of universities based on their performance under the programme.
March 23, 2022 – Islamabad: After a thorough investigation conducted jointly by Ehsaas and Law and Enforcement Agencies, a gang of fraudsters involved in fraudulent activities, has been arrested from Multan. They were defrauding Ehsaas beneficiaries across South Punjab in their payments. Cash, ATM cards and CNICs of various Ehsaas Kafaalat beneficiaries have also been recovered from their possession. A case has been registered and further investigation is underway. Taking to twitter, Dr. Sania vowed stern action against fraudsters arrested.
March 21, 2022 – Multan: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM together with Additional Chief Secretary, South Punjab Captain (Retd) Saqib Zafar co-chaired a high-level meeting in Multan with district administrations, Law and Enforcement Agencies, partnering bank and regional officers of Ehsaas from South Punjab. The meeting took place at the Secretariat of Additional Chief Secretary, South Punjab. The meeting aimed to discuss coordinated steps to improve the quality of Ehsaas Kafaalat payments in field. It was also agreed that 20 more payment campsites will be organized to facilitate Ehsaas payments in all 11 districts of South Punjab. Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners, Regional Police Officers, District Police Offers and senior officers from FIA, ISI, IB and Anti-corruption Establishment from Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan and Bahawalpur Divisions of South Punjab assured full support to Ehsaas to improve the operations of Ehsaas disbursements.
March 20, 2022 – Islamabad: The 3rd and final day of “5th PGF International Ladies Amateur Golf Championship was played under the impressive air show for the 23rd March parade – and what a show ! the day was a perfect Mid Spring Day well played and well enjoyed by all participants. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM very graciously adorned the event as its Chief Guest. Prize distribution ceremony was held at the Golf Course Terrace with a panoramic view of the golf course. Dr. Sania while speaking on the occasion to the gathering said that it was a moment of joy to see so many young girls taking up competitive sports and to see so many ladies playing championship. She extended her full support in promotion of ladies in sports. Dr. Sania also spoke about the Ehsaas programme and how it is positively impacting ladies’ lives in Pakistan. Later, she mingled with the invitees of the prize distribution ceremony.
March 18, 2022 – Islamabad: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM convened a meeting today to take stock of the refinements being made to the “Ehsaas Raabta App” that is currently in its final stages. Principally aimed to guide a common man about different programmes of Ehsaas, the android-based Ehsaas Raabta App will be available shortly on Google Playstore. “Ehsaas Raabta will be all-in-one platform of Ehsaas, digitally linking public with the right set of information needed to enroll and benefit from its diverse programmes. A ChatBot is also being integrated into this app to help users by providing answers to their queries about Ehsaas”, said Dr. Sania. The meeting also reviewed the quality and improvement aspects of the app. Secretary Ismat Tahira, Additional Secretary Syed Muazzam Ali, Director General Naveed Akbar, Director General Noor Rehman, Director General Meer Anwar and other senior officials of Ehsaas were also present in the meeting.
March 14, 2022 – Islamabad: Prime Minister has raised the six-monthly stipend amount of Kafaalat from Rs.12,000 to Rs.14,000. Currently, a Kafaalat tranche of Rs. 71 billion is being disbursed in all Tehsils of the country. To review payments under Kafaalat, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM convened several meetings with the leadership of Habib Bank Limited, Chief Secretaries of provinces and IGs of Police. Secretary Ismat Tahira and all Director Generals of Ehsaas were also present in the meeting together with Focal Persons of provinces. The pace of payments and issues emerging from the field were discussed in detail. The meeting also discussed the zero-tolerance policy for those involved in illegal deductions. A Committee was also constituted with representation from Director Generals of Ehsaas, Officers of partnering Banks and focal persons of provinces to review Ehsaas Cash disbursements on daily basis.
March 10, 2022- Islamabad: A high-level delegation of Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) called on Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM at Ehsaas offices in Islamabad. The meeting explored avenues of collaboration between Ehsaas and CPA. The delegation was led by Ian Liddle, Acting Chair, MP, Member of UK Parliament; Stephen Twigg, Secretary General; and Emily Davis, Head of Parliamentary Outreach Programme. The delegation is on an official visit to Pakistan between March 7 to 12, 2022. Dr. Sania is also the member of CPA’s Human Rights Asia Working Group.
March 7, 2022 – Islamabad: On three years of completion of Ehsaas, Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired the event at the Prime Minister’s Secretariat. Addressing the ceremony, PM felicitated Ehsaas team on successful and fastest deployment of all social protection and poverty reduction programmes of Ehsaas in three years. PM also announced the nationwide deployment of Ehsaas Rashan Riayat that is globally first and fastest end-to-end digital targeted subsidies programme of national scale. “Every month, the Rashan programme of Ehsaas will disburse 30% commodity subsidies to 20 million deserving families on the purchase of flour, pulses, cooking oil and ghee”, stated PM. At the event, PM was joined by Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM, Shibli Faraz, Federal Minister for Science and Technology, Syed Fakhar Imam, Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research, and country heads of international development partners. PM also gave away cheques among women beneficiaries of Ehsaas.
Mar 5, 2022 – Lahore: Governor Punjab, Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar and Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM co-chaired the “Ehsaas Rashan Riayat Retailers’ Convention” held at the Governor’s House in Lahore. The event was hosted by Punjab Social Welfare Department. Punjab Minister for Social Welfare and Bait ul Mal, Syed Yawar Abbas Bukhari also joined the convention alongside the senior leadership of National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), Bank of Punjab and Bank of Khyber. Deputy Commissioners from all over Punjab participated in the event together with a large number of retailers, and office bearers of trader associations as well as Kiryana alliances. A detailed interaction was held with retailers. Dr. Sania spoke to Kiryana retailers and clarified their questions about the Ehsaas Rashan programme. Best performing Kiryana retailers were awarded with shields under the programme. DCs were also conferred shields for their active role in Ehsaas Rashan Registration Drive.
March 4, 2022 – Khyber Tribal District: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM visited Tirah Valley in Khyber Tribal District. She welcomed thousands of internally displaced families returning home after twelve long years. During the visit, she announced the federal government’s Ehsaas Emergency Cash package for 15,699 affected families, after the Prime Minister’s approval. Each family will get one off cash assistance of Rs. 20,000 as an immediate relief. Dr. Sania was joined by senior officials of Pakistan Army and Frontier Corps North KP. She also interacted with the men as well as women of affected families and assessed their need. While in Tirah, Dr. Sania also reviewed arrangements being made to open Ehsaas Registration Desks. Ehsaas’ shock-responsive registry is being operationalized in the valley for self-registration of families in need of Ehsaas’ cash assistance.
March 1, 2022 – Islamabad: Under the Ehsaas umbrella, the meeting of the Ehsaas Rashan Riayat Steering Committee was convened at the Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division (PASSD). Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM chaired the meeting. The steering committee meeting commenced with the briefing on the roll out progress of the programme. Revising the eligibility criteria, the committee agreed to change the family income threshold to a certain level so that maximum number of deserving families could benefit from the Rashan Riayat programme. Under the second phase of registration, Ehsaas 8171 SMS service has also recently been reopened to register low-income families for Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme. The steering committee has the mandate to oversee the roll out of the Ehsaas Rashan Riayat through PASSD and National Bank of Pakistan.
Feb 27, 2022 – Islamabad: Ehsaas has reopened the 8171 SMS service to register low-income families for Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme. “Keeping in view the keen interest of people, we have decided to reopen the Ehsaas 8171 SMS service so that more deserving families can benefit from the Rashan Riayat programme of Ehsaas”, said Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM. Families with monthly income less than Rs. 50,000 can enroll themselves by simply sending their CNIC to 8171. Only one member of an applicant family whose mobile number is issued on his own Computerised National Identity Card can register his family through 8171. The formal roll out of the programme in partnership with National Bank of Pakistan is just on the anvil. In this regard, all arrangements are ready. Under the programme, 30% targeted subsidy will be granted on monthly basis to 20 million eligible families on the purchase of flour, pulses, cooking oil or ghee.
Feb 24, 2022 – Peshawar: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM inaugurated the newly built model Panagah at Charsadda Road, Peshawar. This new Panagah is the second in Peshawar and eighth in KP. In line with Prime Minister’s vision of developing Pakistan as a welfare state, the model facility will provide one star plus bed and breakfast facility with meals, essentials, hygiene, and security standards. “So far, we have opened 39 model Panagahs nationwide. As per PM’s special instructions, Panagahs not only provide boarding and lodging to daily wage earners but also a two-time meal for them, and all this is done with utmost dignity. Each Panagah serves free meals to around 500 people and offers 100-bed facility for overnight stay”, said Dr. Sania while speaking to media. Dr. Sania also took round of the facility and interacted with the staff and daily wagers being served. Malik Zaheer Abbas Khokhar, Managing Director Pakistan Bait ul Mal gave an overview of prioritized service standards at the Panagah.
Feb 24, 2022 – Khyber Tribal District: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM inaugurated the Ehsaas Center in Jamrud Tehsil of Khyber Tribal District where Ehsaas payments, Ehsaas survey registration and Ehsaas School Stipends’ enrollments are being delivered under one roof. Ehsaas Centers have also been opened in Bara and Landi Kotal Tehsils of Khyber. At the center, Dr. Sania spoke to women, listened to their concerns, and assured them full cooperation. While in Khyber, Dr. Sania also made a surprise visit to an orphanage, “Dar-ul-Ehsaas” and inspected the facility that houses one hundred deserving children.
Feb 22, 2022 – Islamabad: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and Huawei Pakistan signed a memorandum of understanding to close the digital divide and to reduce the gender gap by empowering women through digital technologies all across Pakistan in Punjab, KP and Sindh to begin with. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM was a chief guest on the occasion. The event focused on gender inclusion in ICT field and facilitating the digital empowerment of women in Pakistan by enhancing collaboration with national and international companies. The signing ceremony was also attended by Federal Secretary (IT & T) Dr. Muhammad Sohail Rajput, PTA Chairman Maj Gen (Retd) Amir Azeem Bajwa, CEO Jazz Aamir Ibrahim, CEO Ufone Hatem Bamatraf, CEO Telenor Pakistan Irfan Wahab Khan, Deputy CEO Huawei Pakistan Ahmed Bilal Masud, and Mr. Wu Han, along with other respective members from signing parties.
Feb 18, 2022 – Islamabad: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM made an unannounced visit to Islamabad Model College for Girls in Tarlai area of Islamabad. Dr. Sania met with girls enrolled under Ehsaas School Stipends and took their feedback about the programme. During the visit, she also checked the attendance records of enrollees. Later, Dr. Sania sat with teachers and college administration for policy insights. Senior officials of Ehsaas were also present on the occasion. Under the school stipends programme of Ehsaas, girls get a higher stipend amount as compared to boys from nursery to 12th grade.
Feb 17, 2022 – Islamabad: A meeting was held between Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM and Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder, and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This was Bill Gates’ first ever visit to Pakistan. Dr. Sania briefed him about Ehsaas and the focus on data, digitization, & transparency as key drivers of all Ehsaas programmes. During the meeting, Bill Gates termed Ehsaas “a state of the art programme”. Dr. Sania thanked him for his words of appreciation for Ehsaas and his support. Ehsaas programmes and initiatives are end-to-end digitized, reducing human discretion and exploitation. Bill Gates was also briefed on governance reforms under Ehsaas and the Building and Rebuilding Institutions Initiative (BRI). Secretary Muhammad Ali Shahzada, Secretary Ismat Tahira, Additional Secretary Captain (Rtd) Saeed Ahmed Nawaz and Additional Secretary Syed Moazzam were also present in the meeting.
Feb 17, 2022 – Islamabad: A high-level German delegation from BMZ, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development Germany hailed the One Window Center of Ehsaas in Islamabad. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM briefed the delegation on the single window operations of multisectoral Ehsaas programme. The visit aimed to explore avenues of collaboration with Ehsaas. Mr. Jochen Flasbarth, State Secretary BMZ; Mr. Helmut Fischer, Head of Division, BMZ; Mr. Bernard Schlagheck, German Ambassador to Pakistan; and Mr. Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel, Board Member of the Deutsche Gesellschaft Fuer International Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), were part of the delegation. Members of the delegation took keen interest in the real time demonstration of One Window Ehsaas operations. They felicitated Ehsaas on the commendable integration of all Ehsaas benefits under one roof.
February 15, 2022 – Islamabad: Country Director Asian Development Bank (ADB), Yong Ye visited ‘One Window Ehsaas Center’ in Sitara Market of the federal capital. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM welcomed him to the center. The visit explored collaborative options to expand the One Window Ehsaas operations all over the country. Yong Ye was briefed on the ‘One Stop Shop’ operations of Ehsaas which integrate all benefits for 14 different target groups in one space. He highly appreciated the integration of wide range of services for social protection, financial inclusion, education, health and nutrition, and poverty graduation education at the One Window Ehsaas Center. From Ehsaas’ side, Secretary Ismat Tahira, Additional Secretary Syed Moazzam and Director General Naveed Akbar were also present at the center.
Feb 14, 2022 – Islamabad: From Feb 1, 2022 the biannual stipend amount of Ehsaas Kafaalat has been raised from Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 13,000. The increase of Rs.1,000 was ratified by the Federal Cabinet in June last year to benefit all Ehsaas Kafaalat beneficiaries. “With the recent raise in Kafaalat stipend amount, all eligible beneficiaries of Kafaalat will now get Rs. 13,000 as a six-monthly stipend amount. No agent of partnering banks will be allowed to illegally deduct any money from payment to deserving families”, said Dr. Sania in her televised message for retail agents of Habib Bank and Bank Alfalah. Further, caveating agents to refrain from fraudulent deductions, Dr. Sania reiterated, “A stern action will be taken against agents involved in illegal deductions. They will be dealt with strictly according to the law.” She also urged beneficiaries to collect full payment of Rs. 13,000 from the agents along with the computerized payment receipt at the time of Kafaalat cash disbursement. The video message can be watched here.
Feb 10, 2022 – Islamabad: Prime Minister Imran Khan awarded appreciation certificates to the 10 top performing federal ministries under his government. Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division (PASSD) achieved third position among the 10 best ministries. The Communications and Planning Ministries got top honors of first and second respectively. From PASSD, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM together with Secretary of the Division, Muhammad Ali Shahzada received the award. Certificates were distributed in accordance with performance agreements signed with the federal ministries in which targets were set for them. Addressing the event, PM emphasized the importance of improved ministry performance in achieving the country’s self-sufficiency goal. Other top ministries recognised for their performance at a ceremony included Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training, Ministry of Human Rights, Ministry of Industries and Production, National Security Division, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Interior, and Ministry of National Food Security and Research.
Feb 4, 2022 – Rawalpindi: This world cancer day, Ehsaas Tahafuz has announced its policy to extend support to cancer wards across Pakistan. In Pakistan, it is estimated that over 170,000 new cancer cases are reported every year. Cancer is responsible for the highest deaths in Pakistani population, and the most common cause is inability of patients and their families to bear the catastrophic health expenditures. Ehsaas Tahafuz is the government of Pakistan’s sister programme alongside Sehat Sahulat to protect the vulnerable population from catastrophic health expenditures. Tahafuz is now rapidly scaling up nationwide, after a successful pilot over the last two and a half years in Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi. Dr. Sania visited the Holy Family Hospital to meet the cancer patients being treated under Ehsaas Tahafuz. She was welcomed by Medical Superintendent, Dr. Shazia Zeb. SAPM took round of the hospital and met with cancer patients and their families. “We have taken a principal decision to include cancer packages in Ehsaas Tahafuz”, said Dr. Sania while speaking to media at the hospital.
Islamabad – Feb 2, 2022: A consultative workshop on the research strategy was held, under the umbrella of Ehsaas. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM chaired the workshop. A draft research strategy was presented for inputs and was finalized. The workshop discussed broad contours of a three-year research strategy for Ehsaas that will provide the framework for all research related activities aimed at improving the effectiveness of wider safety net operations. Participants included Dr. Ashfaque Hassan Khan, Dean and Principal NUST School of Social Sciences & Humanities; Knut Ostby, UNDP Resident Representative; Omer Bin Zia, Senior Project Officer, Asian Development Bank; Dr. Ali Salman, Executive Director, Policy Research Institute of Market Economy, Dr. Aliya, Economist, Quaid-e-Azam University; and Dr. Zahid Asghar, Director School of Economics, Quaid e Azam University. Senior representatives from PIDE, Lahore School of Economics, Asian Development Bank, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Social Policy and Development Center also joined the workshop. From Ehsaas, Secretary Ismat Tahira, DG Naveed Akbar, DG Noor Rehman and DG Tariq Mehmood were also present on the occasion.
Jan 28, 2022 – Tashkent: Dr. Sania Nishtar was invited to speak at the apex level event with heads of ministries and agencies of member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on Poverty Alleviation. Jamshid Kuchkarov, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction, Republic of Uzbekistan hosted the event in Tashkent. Speaking at the event, Dr. Sania highlighted, “Prime Minister Imran Khan during his speech at the meeting of Head of States of SCO which was held in June 2019 in Bishkek articulated his eight-point agenda. This included a proposal to narrow the research-policy gap through the establishment of leading knowledge center for poverty reduction within the SCO framework.” Further, she reiterated, “There is an urgent need to establish a permanent mechanism for regular exchange of experiences and information on the applied innovative measures aimed at poverty alleviation.” The apex event also discussed regional approaches to poverty alleviation in the SCO member states.
Jan 27, 2022 – Islamabad: A meeting of the steering committee for the Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme was convened at the Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division (PASSD). Dr. Sania Nishtar chaired the meeting. The steering committee has been re-constituted to oversee the roll out of the Ehsaas Rashan Riayat through PASSD and National Bank of Pakistan (NBP). The steering committee discussed and took beneficiary targeting decisions in line with guidance from the Federal Cabinet to support deserving families through Rashan programme. Ehsaas 8171 SMS registration service has been closed for families to register for Ehsaas Rashan on Jan 26, 2022. Overall, 19 million applicants have registered for the programme. On the ratification of steering committee, the applicants’ data is currently being analyzed with Ehsaas’ data analytics to determine the eligibility. Additional Secretary PASSD, Additional Secretary Finance, Chief Secretary Punjab, Chief Secretary KP, Chief Secretary AJK, Secretary Finance Baluchistan, Secretary Industries Punjab, Secretary Social Welfare KP came to the table together with MD Utility Stores, Group Head Digital Banking NBP, DG Social Protection Authority Punjab, DG Technology Ehsaas and DG Ehsaas National Socio-Economic Registry.
Jan 26, 2022 – Islamabad: Ehsaas hosted a high-level panel discussion with country heads of international development partners to celebrate the launch of Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif app. The event themed around, “Role of conditional cash transfers in improving Human Capital Development in Pakistan”. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM chaired the event. Discussions profoundly resonated with the theme of International Education Day 2022, “Changing Course, Transforming Education”. Expert panelists were—Dr. Christian Turner, British High Commissioner to Pakistan; Najy Benhassine, Country Director, the World Bank; Yong Ye, Country Director, Asian Development Bank (ADB); Aida Girma, Country Representative, UNICEF; and Naveed Akbar, Director General, Ehsaas Conditional Cash Transfers. Panelists shared their experiences in administering education conditional cash transfer programmes. The fully digital, Ehsaas School Stipends/Taleemi Wazaif programme was widely lauded. Distinguished panelists termed Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif app revolutionary to promote education for all in Pakistan. Secretary Ismat Tahira was also present on the occasion.
Jan 25, 2022 – Islamabad: The Ehsaas 8171 SMS service to register deserving families for Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme is closing on Jan 26, 2022 at 12 midnight. Families earning below Rs. 50,000 monthly can register by sending their CNIC to 8171 before the service closes. “All arrangements are in final stages to roll out the Ehsaas Rashan Riayat programme in partnership with National Bank of Pakistan. Also, family eligibility of applicants is currently being determined and we will start sending the eligibility messages very soon, said Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM while announcing the closure of Ehsaas 8171 SMS service for registration of families. The registration of Karyana stores is not closing with 8171 and it will continue through the web-portal: https://ehsaasrashan.pass.gov.
Jan 24, 2022 – Islamabad: Commemorating the International Day of Education, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM visited Islamabad Government Model College for Girls Kot Hathyal in outskirts of Islamabad to formally launch the Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif application. “Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif” android app has specifically been developed to enable enrolment of children from Ehsaas eligible households at their doorstep. During the event, Dr. Sania enrolled a girl in the school stipends programme. She sat with children, mothers and teachers and guided them about the end-to-end digital enrollment process through the newly launched android app. “Facilitating people to self-enroll their children under the Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif programme, we have introduced the app today. Using this app, families can enroll their children themselves at their doorstep without visiting any office”, said Dr. Sania Nishtar while speaking to media. In the next 3 years, Ehsaas Taleemi Wazaif programme intends to bring 10 million deserving children into its fold from 160 districts of Pakistan.
Jan 20, 2022 – Islamabad: At the Sir Syed Memorial Hall in Islamabad, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) and Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) jointly organized the Ehsaas Rehribaan Conference. The event was themed, “Transformation of Street Vending in Islamabad and Lessons for Urban Pakistan”. Senator, Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM was the chief guest at the conference. She distributed vending licenses, issued by the municipality, among the street vendors of Prime Minister’s Ehsaas Rehribaan initiative. Around 150 street vendors, who are given vending licenses and new ecofriendly carts under Ehsaas Rehribaan participated in the conference. Purpose of the conference was to highlight the transformation of street vending in Islamabad under the ongoing Ehsaas Rehribaan initiative and its lessons for replication in Urban Pakistan. High number of officials and representatives from municipality, government agencies, academia, microfinance banks and civil society also attended.
Jan 8, 2022 – Multan: Early morning, Dr. Sania held a policy consultation with Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship awardees from Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) Multan. Students from the remote districts of South Punjab and Sindh participated in the consultation. Ehsaas Scholarship recipients widely lauded that the programme had financially empowered them to gain access to university education. Appreciating the transparent execution of Ehsaas scholarships, Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Mansoor Akber Kundi termed it a life changing programme for poor students. Senior faculty members of (BZU) and officials of Ehsaas also joined the consultation.
Jan 16, 2022 – Dubai: Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division in collaboration with Pakistan’s Permanent Mission in New York organized three-themed daylong activities at Expo Dubai 2020 in Pakistan Pavilion. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation chaired these events. Pakistan’s Permanent Mission to the UN in New York convened an information session with Member States to garner support for the Universal Declaration on Social Protection, which Pakistan is leading. Dr. Sania keynoted the event. Participants included Ambassador Munir Akram, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to UN; Feridun Sinirlioğlu, Permanent Representative of Turkey to UN; Tijjani Muhammad-Bande – Permanent Representative of Nigeria to UN; and Rodrigo Alberto Carazo Zeledón, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to UN. The Permanent Representatives of Argentina, Peru and China also spoke at the event and supported the idea of platform. This process started with the mission hosting an event on Social Protection during the United Nations High Level Political Forum in July 2021. The event was co-hosted by Turkey, Nigeria and Costa Rica. 15 countries have already indicated interest in joining the platform and signing the Declaration.
Jan 16, 2022 – Dubai: At Expo Dubai 2020 in Pakistan Pavilion, Ehsaas featured a high-level panel discussion on, “Global experiences in cash transfer programmes”. Dr. Sania along with Pakistan’s Ambassador to United Arab Emirates, Afzal Mehmood co-chaired the event. Panel comprised of global experts, relevant ministers and academics including Ugo Gentilini, Global Lead for Social Assistance, the World Bank; Michal Rutowski, Global Director for Social Protection and Jobs, the World Bank Cina Lawson, Minister of Digital Economy and Transformation Togo; Francesca Bastagali, Director Equity and Social Policy, Overseas Development Institute; Noor Rehman Khan, DG Ehsaas Unconditional Cash Transfers Ehsaas; and Naveed Akbar, DG Ehsaas Conditional Cash Transfers Ehsaas. Panelists shared their global learnings and experiences in administering and studying cash transfer programmes. Ehsaas’ programmes were richly commended for casting wider cash transfers.
Jan 16, 2022 – Dubai: Ehsaas team hosted a “meet and greet event” at Expo Dubai 2020 to inform visitors of Pakistan Pavilion about Ehsaas and its over 288 programmes, initiatives and policy actions. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM and senior officials of Ehsaas—Director General Naveed Akbar and Director General Noor Rehman were personally present at the Pavilion to educate visitors about Ehsaas. Visitors took keen interest in Ehsaas and richly appreciated its myriad pro-poor programmes.
Jan 15, 2022 – Dubai: At Expo Dubai 2020’s Nexus, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar was invited to speak at a high-level global event, “A Decade of Action: Driving Progress for the 2030 Agenda”. Co-curated by Expo 2020 and the United Nations, the event marked the beginning of Global Goals Week. Top leadership from countries and organizations working on the SDGs came together for solutions-focused discussions around four ‘anchor’ areas – Climate Change and Energy, Food Systems, Gender Equality and Human Capital. This event was co-hosted by Deputy Secretary General. Amina J. Mohammed and the Minister of State for International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates and Director General of the Expo 2020, H.E. Reem Al Hashmy. This high-level invitation only event brought together 30 global leaders to discuss how in the spirit of the Decade of Action, the international community could drive action towards the successful fulfilment of the SDGs. There were 4 speakers in this exclusive event. Dr. Sania was invited to speak about human capital and the SDGs.
Jan 14, 2022 – Islamabad: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM chaired a review meeting with Ehsaas Tahafuz team at the Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division. The meeting tracked preparations for the nationwide expansion of Ehsaas Tahafuz. The programme is being to 14 public sector hospitals across all four provinces and federating units. Director General, Ehsaas Tahafuz briefed on the scale-up plan and progress on the development of dashboards and website. Secretary of the Division, Muhammad Ali Shahzada was also present. Ehsaas Tahafuz is Pakistan’s first shock-oriented precision safety net being introduced under the umbrella of Ehsaas. Currently, it is fully functional in one hospital of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
Jan 12, 2022: Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM was invited to keynote the International Chambers Summit 2022. The two-day summit was attended by more than 60 chamber presidents from across Pakistan, including nine women’s chambers and nine small chamber presidents. Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry had organized the event. Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Sania urged Presidents of Chambers to create awareness among Kiryana shopkeepers in their respective areas on the ongoing Ehsaas Rashan Registration Drive. She highlighted that Kiryana retailers will get 8% tax free commission on each Ehsaas Rashan sale amount. Kiryana retailers will be able to win cars, motorcycles, mobile phones etc through quarterly lucky draws. Kiryana owners signaled their full interest and cooperation towards the registration drive of Ehsaas Rashan Riayat. Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan and Razzaq Dawood, Advisor to the PM on Commerce and Investment also attended the chamber’s summit.
Jan 11, 2022 – Islamabad: A delegation of Cabinet Ministers visited One Window Center of Ehsaas in Sitara Market, Islamabad. Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM briefed them on the One Stop Shop services of Ehsaas which consolidate all benefits for 14 different target groups. The delegation comprised of Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Asad Umar; Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training, Shafqat Mehmood; Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs, Ali Haider Zaidi; Federal Minister for Industries and Production, Khusro Bakhtiar; Deputy Speaker National Assembly, Qasim Khan Suri; and Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Farrukh Habib. The delegation took round of the Center to witness wide ranging Ehsaas facilities and services and met with beneficiaries. It was followed by a joint media briefing. They greatly appreciated that the first One Window Center of Ehsaas was taking care of its beneficiaries like a mother and felicitated Ehsaas on the successful consolidation of all Ehsaas benefits in a single space. Media briefing can be watched here.
Jan 10, 2022 – Islamabad: A progress review meeting was held with National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to track the cadence of Ehsaas Rashan Riayat Registration. Dr. Sania Nishtar chaired the meeting. It was appreciated that with the collaborative efforts of Chief Secretaries of KP and Punjab, NBP team and district administrations, the Kiryana retailer registrations have risen substantively from 300 to 3,000 per week. President NBP, Arif Usmani; Chief Digital Officer NBP, Hamayoun Sajjad, executive leadership and over 500 regional officers from all over the country joined the meeting. Secretary of the Social Safety Division, Muhammad Ali Shahzada and Additional Secretary Captain (Retd) Saeed Ahmed Nawaz were also in attendance. The Rashan Riayat programme of Ehsaas is being executed in partnership with NBP.
Jan 10, 2022 – Islamabad: Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Pakistan’s Mission to United Nations in New York convened a briefing today with the Heads of Diplomatic Missions in Islamabad to promote “Declaration on Establishing a Global Social Protection Knowledge Platform”. The Declaration is being led by Pakistan’s Mission to UN in New York in cooperation with a “Group of Friends on Social Protection” including Costa Rica, Nigeria and Turkey, supported by the World Bank. Diplomatic Corps from over 40 countries joined the briefing. Chairing the briefing, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM introduced the Declaration and interacted with participants on its conceptualization and the operationalization of the Global Social Protection Knowledge Platform. Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood highlighted the objectives of the briefing and called on the Heads of Missions to apprise their respective governments to support this global knowledge-sharing initiative. The participants were also informed that Ehsaas, Pakistan’s social protection programme, has organized a day-long event at the Dubai Expo Pakistan Pavilion on 16 January 2022 to promote the Declaration.
Jan 8, 2022 – Khanewal: On the second day of visit to South Punjab, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar, SAPM spent a very busy day in Khanewal. At the District Headquarter Hospital Khanewal, she opened the Ehsaas Nashonuma Center. Senior officials of Ehsaas were also preseFour Ehsaas Nashonuma Centers are functional in Jahanian, Khanewal, Kabirwala and Mian Channu Tehsils of Khanewal. Currently, Ehsaas Nashonuma Centers are operational in two districts of South Punjab: Khanewal and Rajanpur. “In line with PM’s vision to address stunting in children, Ehsaas Nashonuma Centers will be opened in all tehsils of the country this year”, said Dr. Sania. Under Ehsaas Nashonuma, nutrition centered cash transfers are granted to the pregnant and lactating mothers and those with children under 2 years of age. Disbursements are linked to the consumption of nutritious food, immunization, checkups, and participation in health awareness training.
Jan 8, 2022 – Khanewal: Dr. Sania went to Khanewal to witness the digital process of children being registered for Ehsaas School Stipends. She met with children and mothers at Government Girls Primary School, Kot Ala Singh in Khanewal. She also spoke to teachers, beneficiary children and their mothers. At Kot Ala Singh school, 60 out of 160 total children are currently being enrolled for Ehsaas School Stipends. “Under the programme, girls’ stipends are high as compared to boys. This is the first of its kind girl favoring programme worldwide to inspire poorest families to send their children especially girls to schools”, commented Dr. Sania.
Jan 8, 2022 – Multan: Dr. Sania Nishtar chaired a meeting on Ehsaas Tahafuz with management and senior officials of Nishtar Hospital Multan. Vice Chancellor Nishtar Medical University, Dr. Rana Altaf, Secretary Health; Director General Ehsaas Tahafuz; and Director General Ehsaas, Punjab, were also present on the occasion. The meeting explored ways of collaboration between Ehsaas Tahafuz and Nishtar Hospital. It was discussed that Tahafuz programme is being expanded to 14 public hospitals of the country this year. Tahafuz, under the umbrella of Ehsaas, is a patient centric, shock-oriented programme that caters to one-time catastrophic health costs for those who lack the ability to bear the heavy expenditures.
June 8, 2022 – Islamabad: On special instructions of the Prime Minister, winter clothes, shawls, caps and socks are being distributed among poor inmates of Panagahs. This is to protect the daily wage earners from harsh weather conditions. Pakistan Baitul Mal (PBM) is monitoring the distribution process to ensure accommodating every deserving person in Panagahs. Aiming to protect the daily wagers, laborers, passengers, and other needy persons from the extreme cold weather conditions; this kind gesture really describes the affection of Prime Minister for the vulnerable populace of the country. PBM is one of the main executing agencies of Ehsaas with a responsibility for Panagahs and other care services.
