Pakistanis living abroad have always donated generously to various philanthropic causes in the country especially during the difficult times and holy month of Ramadan. While appreciating the importance and impact of these contributions, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) launched the Roshan Samaaji Khidmat (RSK) under the Roshan Digital Accounts (RDA) platform to facilitate non-resident Pakistanis in sending donations and zakat to charities through banks, in a completely digital manner.
While NRPs have welcomed schemes like Roshan Apni Car and Roshan Apna Ghar, they have also opened their hearts to philanthropy, through Roshan Samaaji Khidmat (RSK).
The vision of RSK is to digitize collections by removing frictions in the payments process. Now non-resident Pakistanis do not need to search for bank account details of charitable organizations from their websites, add them as a beneficiary and then initiate the payment. Instead, with just three to four clicks, customers can send donations and zakat to the charity organization of their choice, through RSK.
Historically, we have seen Pakistanis particularly the diaspora generously donating during the month of Ramazan, signifying the importance of the Islamic month. Keeping this in view, SBP in collaboration with the RDA banks pursued to educate the NRPs regarding the Roshan Samaaji Khidmat platform. SBP also connected with the diaspora through webinars and a dedicated podcast to ensure that the diaspora is well aware of RSK and its benefit to Pakistan and the underprivileged population. Due to these efforts, more than Rs.250 millions have been recorded in donations from the NRPs under RSK during the current holy month of Ramadan, which is the highest ever since the launch of RDA.
These plentiful donations have not only supported the underprivileged population to survive but also acted as a catalyst for improving lives for millions living in Pakistan. SBP shall continue to endeavor the promotion of the RDA proposition with the intent to bring maximum benefit to the diaspora, to enable them to connect with the Pakistani Banking system.
