President Dr Arif Alvi on Friday gave his assent to the appointment of Dr Amjad Saqib as the Chairman of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), Radio Pakistan reported.

The appointment was made in accordance with Section 5(3) of the Benazir Income Support Programme Act 2010, the President’s Office said.

Founder of microfinance programme Akhuwat Dr Amjad Saqib was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize last year for his humanitarian work in poverty alleviation. He was among the 343 candidates from around the world nominated for this prestigious prize.

Earlier this year, Dr Amjad was named ‘Global Man of the Decade’ for his extraordinary contributions by Global Men Magazine.

In August 2021, Dr Amjad Saqib won The Ramon Magsaysay Award 2021, popularly known as the Asian Nobel Prize, for his “first-of-its-kind” interest- and collateral-free microfinance programme that has helped millions of poor families.