Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday announced a Rs38 billion Ramazan Relief Package which will be disbursed among deserving people across the four provinces as well as the people of Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) and Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK).

“Rs38bn will be disbursed through digital bank accounts among 12.1 million families, without discrimination,” said the premier while addressing the ceremony of the PM Ramazan Package 2026.

“Every deserving family will receive Rs13,000 through digital wallet or bank transfer, without discrimination based on party affiliation or point of view,” he said.

The prime minister elaborated that out of the Rs38bn, Rs10bn is reserved for those families already registered with the government’s Kafalat programme.

“This is the biggest effort at the federal level in terms of volume and challenges for the month of Ramazan,” he said, adding that the government, through coordinated efforts, has undertaken a major challenge to ensure that deserving people across the country receive the funds.

PM Shehbaz also assured of a periodical review of the initiative’s progress.

The prime minister thanked international partners for their valuable contribution, interest and concern, saying, “Together we will achieve this landmark.”

At the onset of his address, the premier highlighted loopholes in previous Ramazan packages, including substandard food items and long queues at utility stores, which “compromised the dignity of deserving people,” saying, “It was a painful sight.”

“We ended it last year, and a major commitment was made to transfer cash through a digital system. It was a new initiative to replace the corrupt system and introduce a better one.”

He also shared challenges of the new system, including the willingness of banks to participate, the lack of a fully developed cashless economy in Pakistan, and the challenges encountered by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

“This year, the same experiment is being repeated with better performance and KPIs (key performance indicators),” he said.

This year, the relief amount has been increased from Rs5,000 to Rs13,000 for each family that is not benefiting from other sponsorship programmes. Rs28bn has been reserved for them under the package.

The central bank has also issued a framework for the payment under the system to make the disbursement transparent, speedy and secure.

Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that the package would be distributed among 1.2 million families. It will, in fact, be distributed among 12.1 million families. The error is regretted.