FAISALABAD: In a meeting with Mrs. Lis Rosenholm, Ambassador of Denmark to Pakistan, Nighat Shahid, President Faisalabad Women Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FWCCI) discussed in detail the economic well-being of women. Lis Rosenholm assured all possible cooperation in this regard.

Nighat Shahid said that Women- led -businesses need to be facilitated to export their products (traditional and non-traditional) to world markets, women economy should be strengthened at international level in the larger interest of promoting women entrepreneurship.

She said that we have to think over how women led businesses could be promoted and their role in the economic activities be enhanced. She said that women are 52 percent of our population but their contribution to economic activities is only 12 percent. She said that second alarming fact is that women are engaged in low paid and low productive activities while business and social irritants are additional. She said that women need to be encouraged with enabling business environments. They need capacity building and business knowledge, skills, cheap finance, digital technology and get rid of unwarranted social constraints.

She said that in Islam, women used to take keen interest in businesses in addition to cope with the domestic responsibilities. She said that women need to be encouraged for their productive role in the society and economy. She said that her main focus is to promote women entrepreneurship particularly for young females to new business startups in order to drive economic growth.

She said that we have invited attention of policy makers that girls at school level must be equipped with vocational training to become a productive part of the national economy, She said FWCCI has already started facilitating young female graduates for new business startups including training programs and consultancy services and requested to TEVTA Authorities, GIZ, JICA, ILO, USAID, to come forward as partner organization with FWCCI to harness young educated females for news business startups and necessary technical and vocational trainings.

To upgrade women home based businesses, she informed that FWCCI has started training programs in Digital and Social marketing, web development, computer application, graphic designing, green technology etc.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022