Governor Sindh Mr Mohammad Zubair has said that there was an urgent need to create awareness about the biased behaviour against women in our society so as to protect them and utilise their capabilities in more effective manner.

This he said while addressing at the 9th anniversary of the LadiesFund Women’s Awards for Pakistan 2017 at Governor House. The event was organised by Dawood Global Foundation (DGF) and featured some of the most eminent women in Pakistan.
Governor State Bank of Pakistan Mr Ashraf Wathra and most dynamic and inspiring women in Pakistan gathered to celebrate the strength and empowerment of women, as well as acknowledge the great economic contribution of Pakistani women. The Lifetime Achievement Winner was Seema Aziz, the managing director of Sefam Pvt. Ltd. the largest fashion retailer, employing 13,000 employees, and also founder of CARE Foundation, one of the largest non-governmental organisation of Pakistan having a vast network of 234 schools and educating over 160,000 children.
Governor Sindh further said that a woman has many roles, she is a wife, mother, sister and daughter and each relation is so beautiful. Islam has also praised and highlighted the contributions of a woman in overall development of the society and as a custodian of a household, he opined.
Mr. Zubair said that problems of women such as provision of their due rights and education, poverty alleviation and creation of employment opportunities need special focus of each and every one of us. The role being played by women in collective economic development of any country was of immense importance, he observed.
He said that it’s the duty of every sitting Government to ensure maximum opportunities to women in their field of choosing so they can express their talent and abilities in a conducive atmosphere. The present Government was aware of its obligations towards women and special attention was attached to provide an even playing field to more than half portion of our population, he added.
While lauding the globally recognised award-winning Educate a Girl initiative of DGF, Governor Sindh that it was the need of the hour to educate and encourage our female population to enter and stay in the work force. He said that tolerance was the key for progress of any nation and country and if women are working they could ensure spread of tolerance and respect in the society, as well as be economically strong.
He also commended distribution of awards amongst the most talented and prominent ladies in various fields by Ladiesfund.  Governor State Bank of Pakistan Mr Ashraf Wathra while addressing the gathering said that State Bank would continue its cooperation for encouraging women entrepreneurs.  President of DGF Ms Tara Uzra Dawood speaking on the occasion  highlighted various initiatives of her organisation. She also pledged to continue holding such events to encourage and promote women doing wonders in various fields. She thanked Governor Sindh for taking keen interest in the event and for hosting the event at Governor House.

Winners at the event included Fareeda Tariq of Peshawar (Woman of the Year), Highest-tax paying salon owner Nabila Maqsood (Momentum), co-Founder of the Eat Festival Sara Chhapra (Trailblazer), Gul Nazar from Kalash (Idol), Sindh’s first female pilot Dr. Tarana Saleem (Pioneer), saver of stray animals Ayesha Chundrigar (Angel), Sister Ruth Lewis of Durul Sukun (Angel), and the courage awards were given out posthumously to the first female journalist Naushaba Burney and the activist lawyer Hamida Khuhro. Commendations were also won by Huma Adnan (Fashion), Tena Durrani (Fashion), Iman Ahmed (Fashion), Joshinder Chaggar (Dance), Fatima Munir (Art), Madiha Hyder (Art) and Seema Nusra (Art).  International Travel Fellowships were present to Rija Khan (UK), Sonia Kumari (Germany) and Rabeeya Hafeez (Turkey), Iqra Bachelors scholarships to Maica Mary (MBA) and renewed by Yusra Tufail, Marium Hashmi and Maria Javed.  Educate a Girl vocational scholarships celebrated their completion of the education of 1000 deserving girls in Karachi as well as the incubation of the programme by Facebook’s charity internet.org and its Free Basics programme.

Ms. Dawood said that LadiesFund was established in 2007 as an initiative to provide financial security to women and to promote and train women entrepreneurs. It aims to integrate the entrepreneurial needs based on the economic and social aspects. She said that 150 local and international partners are working with DGF and her main goal for 2017 is to complete education of 1000 deserving girls in both Pakistan and Africa.

LadiesFund’s Advisory Council consists of Sultana Siddiqui, Amir Adnan, Abdul Kader Jaffer, Byram Avari, Dr. Ishrat Husain, Nasreen Jalil, Ghalib Nishtar, Khalid Mirza, and Khush Bakht Shijaat. Spotted in the audience were some of the most eminent women across Pakistan including Yasmeen Lari, Ameena Saiyid, Sultana Siddiqui, as well as Consul General of US Grace Sheldon, Germany Rainer Schmiedchen, Russia Oleg Avdeev and British Deputy Head of Mission Steve Crossman.