The World Bank has approved $46 million in financing for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Citizen Centered Service Delivery Project, aimed at improving access to child health services in selected districts of the province.
The project will focus on supply and demand interventions to enhance health service delivery and the operations of citizen-centric administrative facilitation centers in tribal districts.
The World Bank’s Resident Mission in Islamabad stated that public service delivery, particularly in the health sector, has been weak in these districts, with limited access to basic services.
The merger of Fata-KP four years ago has not fully addressed the challenges, resulting in a lack of services and weak local administration in tribal areas.
The project aims to address these issues and improve service delivery by implementing local governance reforms, strengthening administrative capacity, and making key financial investments.
The World Bank estimates that around 300,000 children under the age of two will benefit from the child welfare grants provided through the project. Families of these children will receive Rs12,500 spread over five visits for attending health awareness sessions and growth monitoring.
Najy Benhassine, the World Bank’s country director for Pakistan, highlighted that the project would expand child wellness grants and improve access to quality child health services. He also emphasized the adoption of the one-window operation model for citizen facilitation centers to enhance essential service delivery.
The centers offer services such as registration of births, deaths, marriages, divorces, and family records, benefiting approximately 560,000 people.
Amjad Zafar Khan, the Task Team Leader for the project, noted that the initiative would support the transition of the program to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, building on the existing 40 citizen facilitation centers established with federal government support.
The conflict and militancy in tribal districts have severely impacted service delivery and infrastructure, leading to displacement and economic shocks for around 340,000 families.?