Islamabad, October 26, 2022 (PPI-OT): The Asian Development Bank has released USD 1.5 Billion to State Bank of Pakistan under Building Resilience under Active Countercyclical Expenditures (BRACE) Program today. US$1.5 billion BRACE Program aims to support the Government’s efforts to deal with the adverse impacts of devastating floods, supply chain disruptions, rising energy and fuel prices and inflation on the poor and vulnerable.
The BRACE Program will expand the number of families receiving cash transfers through Benazir Income Support Programme from 7.9 million to 9 million, increase the number of children enrolled in primary and secondary schools, and enhance geographic coverage of health services and nutritional supplies for pregnant and lactating mothers and children under 2 years old.
The BRACE Program is completely aligned with the Government’s strategy to provide targeted and temporary countercyclical relief measures. The Program aims to support deployment of planned countercyclical development expenditure and will promote sound macroeconomic management.
The BRACE Program is also in line with the framework of ongoing IMF program to implement necessary structural reforms to improve the country’s macroeconomic prospects. It will also enhance support for business entities to safeguard employment and would help increasing food security measures as well.
Furthermore, it will also strengthen social safety net and fiscal measures for government’s crisis response. The BRACE Program amounting to US$ 1.5 Billion was approved by the ADB Board on Friday, 21st October 2022. This program was initially conceived and approved by the ADB’s Board in May 2022 under a new Countercyclical Support Facility (CSF) to provide targeted support to its developing member countries (DMCs) facing emergency situations.
The Signing Ceremony of the BRACE Program was held on 24th of October, 2022 at Prime Minister House, which was witnessed by the Honourable Prime Minister of Pakistan, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, and Senator Ishaq Dar along with Director General ADB Central and West Asia Department.
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