The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) launched a ‘Women Business Growth Centre’ on Tuesday, to encourage and promote women entrepreneurship, which is an innovative initiative in the private sector. This is expected to be a great initiative for current and aspiring women entrepreneurs in Pakistan.
Women in Pakistan are gradually making a mark in tech and commerce sector with eminent names leading the industry. With the launch of the WBGC, there is hope for facilitating women in achieving their business goals, which, until now, used to be mostly self-sustained campaigns rather than those powered by grassroots instituitional support.
Services You can Expect to Get
A woman entrepreneur in Pakistan is highly restricted when it comes to legal and financial support. She often does not have an idea of the registration process for a business and neither does she have any exposure to industry mechanics. This greatly restricts her potential as she has to rely on banks, investors or external parties to get rudimentary aspects of her business covered.
To overcome these preliminary issues, the WGBC will guide women entrepreneurs in the registration process and give them access to financial institutions for legal finance while at the same time also support them through training programs, mentorship and counseling services. This is a great surge ahead and if anything will only increase the economy of the nation as more and more women come out with their innovative ideas.
Encouraging Women to be a Part of Tech
Until a few years ago, tech was considered a male dominated field but with the rise of tech luminaries like Jehan Ara (Pasha), Madeeha Hassan (Savaree), Sidra Qasim (Markhor) and many others, women are now gradually making a significant impact in Pakistan’s IT and startups sector. Realizing the importance of encouraging women to be a part of tech, the UNIDO and the ICCI collaborated to launch the ‘Women in Cleantech Campaign”, aimed at pushing women in Pakistan to embrace the latest technological tools and trends, which currently has ample room for growth.
The launch of the two programs were welcomed and applauded by the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) Women Wing in Punjab. The Vice President and Chairman FPCCI International Trade and Investment Committee, Amina Malik, also added that ‘Women have a vital role in the economic development of the country,’ and assured that ample support and training programs will be built for familiarizing women with the power of tech.
With this new initiative, we hope that the tech sector of Pakistan experiences growth multi-fold and that women who have to give up their jobs due to social pressures, may, in a way, be encouraged to run their own business from the comfort of their homes.
