Last Updated on October 23, 2026 by YeJahan
YEJAHAN REPORT
LAHORE (Oct 25): Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman, the Emir of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), has launched a fierce critique of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), claiming Pakistan’s flagship cash-transfer scheme has completely failed to address the root causes of poverty.
Highlighting the country’s economic crisis, the JI chief turned to X (formerly Twitter) to state that despite an annual budget exceeding Rs 800 billion, the program has done little to arrest the country’s economic decline.
“Over the past eight years, Pakistan’s poverty rate has surged from 21% to 28%,” he stated, adding that the figures cast serious doubt on the transparency and long-term efficacy of the multi-billion-rupee initiative.
Citing data from the World Bank, the JI leader pointed out a stark regional disparity, noting that Pakistan now accounts for nearly 48% of the extreme poor in the MENAAP region (Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan) who survive on less than $3 a day.
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Hafiz Naeem argued that the trillions of rupees distributed through BISP over the years have yielded zero structural change. He maintained that if these vast public funds had been deployed with rigorous planning and strategic investments, they could have permanently transformed the economic future of millions of young Pakistanis, rather than merely offering short-term relief.
Copyright YeJahan News Network, 2026
