Pakistan considers tinkering with biometric channels to distribute aid

Economic assistance in Pakistan is being distributed through a direct distribution system using biometrics, but that might not be the case in the near future.

According to an article in the Pakistan Observer, the government is looking into direct financial deposits to deserving women through bank accounts, most likely also using biometrics to secure accounts.

Biometric government channels would be a fallback option if a woman did not have a bank account.

The effort is called the Benazir Income Support Programme, and it has a Rs. 364 billion (approximately US$1.6 billion) budget. BISP officials moved more than Rs. 70 billion ($310 million) into areas hit by record floods earlier this year. Families received Rs. 25,000 ($110) using the biometric authentication system, according to the article.

Government officials began talking about moving the BISP off debit cards in 2016 and onto fingerprint biometric identification systems.

At the time, a government audit reportedly found that 683,235 benefit accounts were given a total of Rs. 2 billion ($9 million). The accounts in question were not attached to national digital ID or thumbprints.

The chair of Pakistan’s identity authority, NADRA, recently made the case for universal ID coverage as a pillar of the company’s pursuit of the country’s digital ambitions.

Article Topics

biometric payments  |  biometrics  |  fraud prevention  |  humanitarian  |  Pakistan  |  social security