Shaukat Korai

The Sindh government’s Mamta Program, designed to support pregnant and breastfeeding women in some of the province’s poorest areas, has disbursed Rs527 million to 1.3 million women across 15 districts since its launch in early 2023, according to statistics obtained by Wealth Pakistan.

The figures obtained from the Sindh Social Protection Authority (SSPA) provide a detailed district-wise breakdown of the program’s reach. In Tharparkar, one of the most climate-stressed districts in Sindh, 48,730 beneficiaries have so far received Rs175.86 million. The second-highest number of recipients is in Umerkot, where 37,506 women have been given Rs149.8 million in conditional cash transfers (CCTs).

In Tando Allahyar, 9,165 beneficiaries have been paid Rs13.39 million, while in Sanghar, 13,647 women were supported with Rs8 million. These disbursements were made directly through bank accounts to ensure transparency. Currently, the program has registered 770,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women across 800 health facilities in Sindh.

Of these, 740 centers operate under the People’s Primary Health Initiative (PPHI) and 62 are managed by the provincial Health Department. These centers provide not just financial aid, but also integrated medical facilities, linking the program with maternal and newborn healthcare services. According to projections based on population and birth rate data, the program is expected to reach 2.6 million pregnant and breastfeeding women across Sindh between 2023 and 2027.

Earlier this week, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and the program’s Board of Directors formally approved the expansion of the Mamta Program from 15 to 22 districts, alongside an increase in financial support from Rs30,000 to Rs41,000 per beneficiary by 2027. Officials said the expansion to seven more districts — Sukkur, Khairpur, Shaheed Benazirabad, Jamshoro, Dadu, Naushehro Feroze, and Larkana — will begin once the PC-1 is finalized.

The initiative is part of the Strengthening Social Protection Delivery System in Sindh (SSPDS) — a five-year project financed through a $200 million World Bank credit under the International Development Association (IDA), with an additional $30 million contribution from the Sindh government. Sono Khangharani, a member of the board of directors, told Wealth Pakistan that the increased assistance package is aimed at ensuring better maternal nutrition, regular health check-ups, and safer deliveries.

“The Mamta Program is not just financial support; it is an investment in the health of both mothers and children during the critical first 1,000 days of life,” he said. The Mamta Program, through its combination of cash support, health integration, and social protection, has already proved effective in some of Sindh’s most vulnerable districts.

Credit: INP-WealthPk