ISLAMABAD: Nutrition International’s evaluation shows that Benazir Income Support Program’s pilot adolescent nutrition conditional cash transfer initiative can reduce anaemia for adolescents in Pakistan.

“The pilot project reached over 100,000 adolescent girls with weekly iron and folic acid supplementation while enhancing their knowledge about nutrition and anaemia,” claimed a statement issued by the health ministry on Saturday.

The pilot project ‘Adolescent Nutrition Conditional Cash Transfer’ aimed at addressing anaemia among adolescent girls aged 15-19 and improving nutrition. The 2023-25 pilot project reached more than 100,000 adolescent girls with Weekly Iron Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFAS). The initiative also included nutrition education for girls and their mothers, as well as quarterly conditional cash transfers (CCT) to mothers. Funding for both the pilot and its evaluation was provided by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

To evaluate the impact of the pilot project, the Aga Khan University, PHC Global and Allama Iqbal Open University were taken on board.

The effectiveness evaluation was guided by a Technical Working Group, comprising representatives from BISP, WFP and UNICEF.

Adolescence is a critical stage of the human life cycle, both physically and psychosocially.

According to the National Nutrition Survey 2018, over 54pc of adolescent girls are anaemic, which manifests in the form of short-term effects such as illness, fatigue, lethargy, and poor concentration, and long-term impacts including impaired cognitive development and reduced work capacity.

These consequences ultimately undermine both academic achievement and human capital development.

The project was implemented across six districts in Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Evaluation findings showed that adolescent girls and their families reported improved health, greater awareness of nutrition and health, and stronger trust in the delivery service. Mothers valued the quarterly cash transfers, which increased from Rs1,000 to Rs 2,500 during the pilot.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2025