KARACHI: The Standard Chartered Bank Pakistan Limited (SCBPL) in partnership with the British Deputy High Commission (BDHC), Karachi, organised an event to celebrate International Women’s Day with clients, partners and employees.
A panel discussion was held to focus on “DIGITAL: Innovation and technology for gender equality” led by Khadija Hashimi - Head, CABM AME and Country Head Pakistan SC, Ziana Sakhia - CEO Bechlo.Pk, Sarah Khurram - CEO Sehat Kahani, Azima Dhanjee - Founder ConnectHear, and was moderated by Nida Athar - Director Innoventures Global Private Limited. The key focus of the discussion was on how bringing technology closer to women and other marginalised groups results in more creative solutions and can lead to innovations that meet women’s needs and promotes gender equality.
Speaking at the event Rehan Shaikh, Chief Executive Officer at Standard Chartered Bank said, “Attaining digital knowledge is fundamental to empowering women in today’s age. It supports them shape their own future using technology and enables them to address life’s challenges themselves which in turn has an incredible intergenerational multiplier effect on communities and societies.
We also applaud the State Bank for adopting a gender-responsive approach to financial inclusion and technology. At Standard Chartered, almost half of our global workforce is women with strong representation in our management team.
Similar focus in Pakistan has fortunately led to improvement in our gender diversity from 21 percent to approximately 30 percent in 5 years and we have bigger plans going forward because financial inclusion for the Bank is not just about providing access to financial services, but also about ensuring that women have the knowledge, skills, and confidence to effectively use these services to improve their lives and businesses.”
Martin Dawson, Deputy Head of Mission, BDHC said, “You cannot understand development if you don’t see it through the eyes of girls and women, and you cannot achieve development unless you unleash their full potential. Women and girls should have control over their choices and their future. Put simply, women and girls should face no constraints on realising their full potential. Harnessing the opportunity that digital inclusion provides will be transformative.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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