ISLAMABAD, July 13: The United Nations agency for children will provide funds to Pakistan Baitul Maal to promote education and increase literacy rate among the internally displaced children of Swat district.

The Unicef will provide $300,000 to Pakistan Baitul Maal to assist it in launching a project, which is aimed at encouraging the affected families to enroll their children in primary schools. The social safety net through this child support programme will provide conditional cash transfer to such deserving families, which are too poor to afford educational expenses of their children.

Such poor parents usually engage their children in some petty works to support their families. As a result, the children remain deprived of their basic right of education.

According to the initiative, each of the family will be given an amount of Rs300 per month in case of one child and Rs600 per month in case of two children enrolled in school.

The families, which have no children in schools or don't send their children for studies, will not be eligible for this assistance. PBM Managing Director Zamarud Khan told this reporter that initially the programme was for a period of 18 months. After successful implementation, the programme would be further extended and implemented in other districts especially the poor areas all over the country, he added. Mr Khan said that before this they had successfully piloted the project in three selected districts -- Bhakkar, Tharparkar and Kohistan. He added that the project had been a great success.— Staff Reporter