The budget for all four provinces are out. The Punjab has a total outlay of Rs 2.653 trillion which includes a Rs 560 billion Annual Development Programme (ADP). A total of Rs 200 billion has been allocated in the Punjab for the health and education sector. Rs 145 billion has been reserved for infrastructural development. Over Rs 55 billion has been set aside for agriculture, industry, tourism, wildlife, fisheries, and forestry. In addition, Rs 90 billion is to be spent on special programmes. In Balochistan Rs 5.5 billion has been allocated for the provision of health insurance, Rs 2 billion will be used for Balochistan Enterprise Development, Rs 2 billion for Support Fund for Persons with Disabilities and Rs 3 billion for the Government Employees Housing Fund. In addition, Rs 3 billion will fund pensions, Rs 2 billion the Public Endowment Fund, Rs 500 million the Welfare Fund and Rs 500m the Women’s Economic Empowerment.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has a total budget of Rs 1.118 trillion (with a 21 percent increase over the last year). Out of this, Rs 371 billion is set aside to counter the impact of Covid-19 and to boost economic development. Rs 10 billion is to be used for economic recovery. The money will be provided to small and medium enterprises, women, minorities, youth and businesses hit by the pandemic.

The development budget for Sindh is set at Rs 329.032 billion. This includes Rs 222.5 billion for the ADP and Rs 30 billion for the districts. Foreign project assistance of Rs 71.16 billion and Rs 5.4 billion from the federal PSDP grant will supplement the spending.

Budget for all provinces indicate an increase in development spending. The budget for Balochistan has increased by 44 percent, for the Punjab by 18 percent, for Sindh by 26 percent and for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by 27 percent. The health spending, however, has not seen sufficient increases. Health forms 3.2 percent of the GDP which is less than all countries in the region. There is a greater focus on tertiary health facilities than primary and
secondary. The Sehat Card is a promising addition. Experts say the education department too has not seen any exceptional growth which is very worrisome given that millions of Pakistani children are out of schools.