It is fashionable to hate Zardari, but he has done many good things that people don't give him credit for.
For example, the recent increase in the education budget to 7bn. This is essential for Pakistan to prosper.
In addition, schemes, such as this:
Govt reaches out to poorest of poor
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday launched the ‘Waseela-e-Haq’ programme to extricate the poorest of poor from the ghettos of poverty through a one time interest-free loan of Rs 300,000 to be spent on income generating schemes. The loan is repayable in easy monthly installments over a period of 12 to 15 years.
The event was witnessed by Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, diplomats, federal ministers, senior government officials, representatives of NGOs and poor families. The selection was made through a computerised draw at the presidency from among the poorest of poor families identified by the Poverty Scorecard devised by the Benazir Income Support Programme.
Addressing the gathering, the president described ‘Waseela-e-Haq’ as a groundbreaking poverty alleviation programme and the beginning of the end of the generational poverty trap.
Zardari said the BISP was designed to be much more than merely a poverty alleviation programme. “It will be a comprehensive social protection scheme, and a platform for women empowerment and it will also cover health and accident insurance, vocational training and interest-free financing for self-employment of the poor,” he added.
According to the spokesperson for the president, Farhatullah Babar, the president directed the government to complete the nationwide survey of the poorest of the poor in a transparent manner that aroused the credibility of the international donors to generously donate towards the programme.
He said Rs 34 billion were allocated for it in the budget for 2008-09, which had been enhanced to Rs 70 billion for the year 2009-10 to give cash assistance to five million families.
The government has planned to increase the coverage of the programme to 7 million families over the medium term by the year 2010-11.
The president also advised the government to consider allowing the beneficiaries of the Waseela-e-Haq programme duty free import of vehicles for income generation.
Zardari said as a special measure to empower women, the benefits under the programme would be paid only to the female head of the family. He said the programme was based on the vision of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, who always spoke and thought of providing a social security net for the poor.
Stressing the need for transparency, the president said the public money and international funding must be directly and transparently utilised for the welfare of the most deserving and that the Poverty Scorecard must meet the internationally recognised standards for assessing poverty. “For the programme to succeed it must be above party politics.”
The president also directed that all data relating to beneficiaries, their applications and payment status should be available on the web.
Zardari also thanked the international community for their support to the programme, which, he said, was vital to bring about a revolutionary change in the lives of the poor and underprivileged.
Calling upon the government to complete the national survey for the Poverty Scorecard at the earliest, the president said children without proper nutrition, basic education and health services could not wait for long. He said every month a new set of families all across the country would benefit from the ‘Waseela-e-Haq’ programme.
Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Gilani said it was a major achievement for the PPP government. He said it was the fulfillment of the vision of great leaders’ of the party — Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.
“The PPP formed government amidst the most challenging and turbulent times of our history. The economy was in a steep decline, poverty level was crossing over 30 per cent of the total population, the country was facing stark prospects of hyper inflation, rampant terrorism, electricity shortage, wheat scarcity and key national institutions were in complete disarray. The focus of our government from the day one was to confront the challenges through a multi-pronged approach,” he said.
BISP Chairperson Farzana Raja informed the president that the nationwide survey to identify poor families had already been completed in 15 districts. By the end of next year, the survey in all districts would be completed, she added.
Farzana also read out the names of seven women from Gilgit, Azad Kashmir, Bajaur, Nowshera, Lahore, Karachi and Quetta, who were selected randomly out of 731 beneficiaries of the Waseela-e-Haq programme