Country Programme Director United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, Alice Harding Shackelford has expressed satisfaction on positive role of business community in accommodating the women folk in industrial sector of Sialkot.
In informal meeting at Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) on Monday she said the involving of women folk in industrial sector was highly encouraging and showing positive results adding that it will be supportive in enhancing the overall output. She said Baidarie was rendering highly laudable services in highlighting the problems and safeguarding of home-based workers in Sialkot.
While addressing a workshop on Integrated Support to Home-Based Workers in Sialkot held at Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry organised by Baidarie in collaboration with UN-Women she said attitude of business community of Sialkot was highly encouraging in accommodating the women folk in business.
Speaking on the occasion President Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) Naeem Anwar Qureshi said that undoubtedly women are now coming up as an emerging economic force. The statistics at the global level suggest that women-owned firms involved in the global market place have greater revenue, are more optimistic about business prospects and more fused on business expansion than women-owned firms that are domestically oriented she said.
The SCCI President further said that results regarding involvement of women in business are most positive as more and more women becoming members of SCCI to venture on exports business. Therefore, there is no problem of getting products for exports and the women exporters in Sialkot have special advantage of having complete product range for exports at their doorsteps, he added. Naeem said that SCCI has always supported activities and issues related to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and better working conditions in Sialkot industry. He pointed out that Sialkot industry is fully aware to its role towards the CSR and is determined to provide maximum facilities to the labour force by adhering to the labour laws of the country.
The export industry feels itself incapacitated to address the CSR issues without financial support of the government of Pakistan, international agencies, international brands and other buyers, he said. The SCCI President further added that it is a matter of concern that by and large the buyers were not showing willingness to support the suppliers by sharing the cost increase for complying with CSR demands.