A mid-term review workshop was organised on May 17 and 18 by the country’s largest humanitarian programme, the Citizens’ Damage Compensation Programme (CDCP), which is managed by the cabinet division, government of Pakistan.
The CDCP is the government’s apex programme operating the most trusted compensation instrument for the flood affectees of 2010 – the Watan Card. Recognised for establishing a credible cash transfer mechanism for disaster management through a magstripe debit card, the CDCP has set the scene for a sustainable future disaster management system in Pakistan.
Chief Guest, Cabinet Secretary Ms Nargis Sethi reiterated all out political and institutional support from the government of Pakistan for the programme and acknowledged the contributions of the development partners including USAID, the World Bank, UKaid and the government of Italy. She further highlighted that this programme had been a model of an effective public-private partnership between national and international organizations. She said the programme represents the continued commitment of the government to undertake all possible measures to support early recovery of its disaster-affected population.
NADRA Chairman Ali Arshad Hakeem was also present and he assured further technical support and innovative solutions for efficient and transparent delivery of cash grants to the beneficiaries. More than 7.8 million households have already been enrolled in the programme, which has disbursed 26 billion rupees to date. Some 97 percent of beneficiaries have withdrawn cash. The remaining eligible beneficiaries are being enrolled through the programme’s grievance redress system to ensure that the cash transfers reach all.
Spread over two days, the mid-term review workshop provided an opportunity for all the stakeholders to reflect and deliberate on the cash transfer programme and address areas of concern including those identified by the members of the federal cabinet, particularly regarding Sindh and Balochistan during a presentation made by the cabinet secretary on the progress of the programme in its meeting on April 11, 2012.
As many as 19 development partners proactively participated in the workshop to share lessons learnt and consider recommendations for the future. The key stakeholders included the Cabinet Division, NADRA, Provincial Disaster Management Authorities, District Management Authorities, and representatives from UBL, HBL and Bank Alfalah. The development partners including the World Bank, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), UKAID from the Department of International Development (DFID) and the Italian Government also participated in the workshop. Representatives from the programme’s field implementation partners including International Organization for Migration, Deloitte, Oxford Policy Management Institute and MCOM also shared their perspectives and key learning.