Staff Reporter
Third All Pakistan Women Chambers Presidents’ Summit (APWCPS) organized by Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) began here in Rawalpindi. Dr. Sania Nishtar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation was a chief guest at the inauguration ceremony. Sayed Zulfiqar Abbas Bukhari, Special Assistant to the PM for Overseas Pakistanis & HRD was also present at the occasion. The summit brought together presidents of women chambers and large number of women entrepreneurs from all across the country.
The summit aims to provide a platform for Pakistani businesswomen to discuss challenges and opportunities around economic and commerce activities in the country. Through this discourse, women representatives in business will explore and develop best practices in capacity building to counter the social and economic barriers women in the industry often face.
Addressing the summit, Dr. Nishtar stated, “Prime Minister lays special emphasis on meaningful and equal participation of women in Pakistan’s economy. He strongly believes that we will not achieve sustainable development,if we don’t realize the full potential of half of our citizens”. “The entire Ehsaas agenda aims to uplift women and there are a number of programs and actions through which that will be enabled,” she elaborated on these in detail, further adding. “Ehsaas aims to mainstream the role of private sector in social protection and welfare and is creating appropriate policy and institutional arrangements for that purpose”.
Further, Dr. Nishtar invited Presidents of all Women Chambers in town to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat for a consultation on exploring collaborations under Ehsaas for ensuring effective participation of women in our economy.
Speaking at the occasion, Zulfi Bukhari said, “I am privileged to be invited to the Third All Pakistan Women Chambers Summit. Women are 53% of Pakistan’s population. Stronger woman makes a much stronger nation. The more we integrate women in mainstream businesses and SMEs through formal employment, the more progress our nation can make. We must also appreciate the achievements of Pakistani women and their contributions towards the country in every field.”
