Staff Reporter
The British Council in Pakistan, together with the WOW Foundation, and Southbank Centre and four curating partners are organising the third WOW – Women of the World festival in Pakistan. The announcement was done at a media unveiling ceremony at a local hotel.
The programme unveiling was opened by Michael Houlgate, Area Director Sindh and Balochistan and Chantal Harrison-Lee, Director Arts for British Council Pakistan. This was followed by a detailed programme review by curators Amneh Shaikh-Farooqui from ECDI, Saima Zaidi from Numaish-Karachi, Vicky Zhuang Yi-Yin from Olomopolo Media, Dr Fozia Tahir and consultants Sumbul Khan and Maheen Zia. It also included an open mic performance where three women and a remarkable young girl recited poems, speeches and stories around the WOW Karachi 2019 themes of return, resilience, transformation and environmental sustainability.
Michael Houlgate, Area Director Sindh and Balochistan, British Council said: “We are proud to be part of this global movement celebrating women and girls.
With close to 150,000 girl children enrolled in schools as part of our Take a Child to School programme, 3,500 plus scholarships awarded as part of the Scottish Scholarship programme. When we talk about empowering the people we work with, its only meaningful if its everyone. So a really important aspect of what the British Council does in Pakistan is in our work with women and girls.:
The British Council hosted the first full scale WOW in South Asia in Karachi in 2016. It brought together exceptional and inspiring women, offering a space to share the achievements of women and look at the significant challenges still faced by them.
This is the third time the Women of the Women festival will be held in Karachi, and the 2019 line-up includes important talks and mentoring, musical performances, dramatic readings, panel discussions, workshops, a space for young children and a market reimagined as a diverse and inclusive third space.
