ISLAMABAD: The World Bank (WB) has approved $46 million to improve citizen-centered service delivery and expand access to pediatric healthcare services in many districts throughout Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
The World Bank’s Board approved the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Citizen-Centered Service Delivery Project’s financing of Executive Directors.
According to a WB press release, the initiative would support both demand and supply-side interventions to enhance the province’s provision of health services and the implementation of citizen-centric administrative facilitation centers in the Newly Merged Districts.
World Bank Country Director for Pakistan, Najy Benhassine, said, “The Project will help the government increase the availability of Child Wellness Grants for moms, providing they attend health education seminars. Additionally, it will contribute to better access to services for children’s health.”
According to the announcement, child Welfare Grants (CWGs) will assist around 300,000 young children under the age of two. Families of these children would get Rs. 12,500 (about $45) over five visits for attending health awareness sessions and growth monitoring of their kids to lessen the cost obstacles associated with using these services. To encourage the delivery of vital services to the local populace, the initiative would also assist the KP government in adopting the Citizen Facilitation Centers (CFC) one-window operation model.
The CFCs provide essential services to the local communities, such as registration services, including recording of marriage, divorce, birth, death, family registration, etc., and providing Child Wellness Grants. The CFCs’ services will be used by 560,000 people in total.
Amjad Zafar Khan, the project’s task team leader, stated that the project “will facilitate the transition of the program to the province of KP, bridging the continuity of the activities under the 40 CFCs currently in place with the support of the Federal Government.” —APP
