The FINANCIAL — A $12.5 million additional grant, to finance the continuation of a project to improve the public pension schemes and to build systems to provide safety nets to the country’s poorest people, was signed between the Ministry of Finance and the World Bank, according to The World Bank Group.
“Reforming and upgrading the social safety and pension administration is important for providing the disadvantaged and retired with assistance.” said HE Dr. Omar Zakhailwal, Finance Minister of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. “We thank the World Bank for providing the necessary support in helping us lay the foundations for a modern system to identify and deliver services to the eligible,” he added.
"A huge number of public sector retirees as well as the disabled and families of martyrs direly need financial aid from the government to survive," said HE Amina Afzali, Minister of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. “With funding from the World Bank, we’ve been able to design and deliver public pension schemes and safety nets programs to a good portion of these people. The new funding will enable us to reach out to more such vulnerable families across the country,” he added.
The Government’s Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS) and National Priority Programs (NPPs) emphasize Social Protection. The planning and budgetary framework is increasingly pro-poor and includes mapping of pro-poor expenditures. The formal social protection system is comprised of a safety net and pension scheme for public sector workers. Within the safety net, government and donors target various population groups through a number of unconditional and conditional cash and in-kind benefit programs. They also provide social care services and skills development programs. In addition to the government- run programs, there are other programs run by international donors and NGOs, which are mainly cash or food-for-work schemes, primarily in rural areas, according to The World Bank Group.
“This additional funding will enable the Afghan government to build on the good work it has started in implementing pension reforms and institutionalizing its safety nets programs,” said Robert Saum, World Bank Country Director for Afghanistan. “Key reforms such as rolling out management information systems and effective financial management will ensure that eligible beneficiaries are identified and necessary services efficiently delivered to over 10,000 poorest families of this country, making them hopeful for a better future,” he added.
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