LAHORE: The dream of economic turnaround will not be possible without the participation of women in the economy, said Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar, Governor Punjab.
Speaking at a dinner reception hosted by the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, he said, “If a nation has to prosper and excel, its women have to be empowered. They have to be allowed and authorised to contribute in nation building by becoming equal shareholder.”
The dinner was in honour of participants of the Centre for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) Regional Women Training Workshop.
LCCI President Farooq Iftikhar, Vice President Mian Abuzar Shad, CIPE Deputy Director Andrew Wilson, Country Director CIPE Moeen Fudda, and Convener LCCI Committee on Women Entrepreneur Development and Resource Centre Aasia Saail Khan spoke on the occasion. The Governor said the collaboration of CIPE with LCCI is creating awareness among the women entrepreneurs and helping them to get international exposure.
He said that the government was aware of the challenges, saying the steps were afoot to ensure women participation in the decision-making process at the institutional level.
Farooq Iftikhar said the LCCI is organising training programmes so that maximum number of women could be able to start their businesses and could contribute towards the well-being of the economy.
Moin Fudda said the primary role of the CIPE is to support its local partners’ efforts to improve the business environment through advocacy and policy dialogue in Pakistan.
He said that CIPE was working to implement programs aimed at enhancing business knowledge and strengthening the entrepreneurial culture among women. CIPE, he said, has identified four principal areas to help the business community to become a leading advocate for market-oriented reform and democratic governance. These include a grant program supporting grassroots networks in developing countries, an award-winning communications strategy, capacity building programs, and technical assistance through field offices.
