Benazir Income Support Programme

The Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) is a federal unconditional cash transfer poverty reduction program in Pakistan. Launched in July 2008, it is the largest single social safety net program in the country with nearly Rs. 90 billion ($900 million) distributed to 5.4 million beneficiaries in 2016.

The Department for International Development of the United Kingdom is the largest foreign backer of the program, providing $244 million (or 27%) of the total funds in 2016 with the Pakistani Government providing the rest.

As of 2016, the program distributes Rs.19,338 (or approx. $195) per annum distributed per month. The stipend is linked to the Consumer Price Index and is paid through a smart card.

The Benazir Income Support Programme was established in 2008 by Yousaf Raza Gillani who took the advice of President Asif Ali Zardari. The program's name is a tribute to former Prime Minister and widow of President Zardari, Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in 2007.

Since 2005, the purchasing power of many Pakistani families has been eroded by high inflation and the increasing cost of food and oil. BISP arose against this backdrop as a means to address reductions in purchasing power. Along with the economic development aims of the program, BISP also seeks to empower women by presenting cash transfers directly to female members of households.

BISP is currently the largest aid program in Pakistan and the government's third largest budgetary allocation. BISP spending accounts for .3% of Pakistan's GDP.

In the 2008–2009 fiscal year, more than 3 million Pakistani families received cash transfers through BISP; this figure accounts for 15% of the general population and 40% of the population below the poverty level. For the 2009–2010 fiscal year, the program was expanded to cover 5 million low-income families. At the program's start in 2008, the Pakistani government allocated RS 34 billion, or $425 million, for BISP; the allocation doubled to RS 70 billion, or $875 million in the following year.

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