Engro Foundation honours COVID- 19 frontline heroes in first-ever virtual IATC awards

Engro Foundation, the social investment arm of Engro Corporation, has recognized the achievements of Pakistan’s COVID-19 frontline heroes and announced eight recipients of its flagship I Am The Change (IATC) Awards.

Amidst the global pandemic, the IATC 2020 invited frontline workers, who could be self-nominated or nominated by supervisors/head of organizations, to share their inspiring impact stories and how they have been able to create community impact in the fight against COVID-19. More than 100 applications were received in five categories for a chance to receive support and recognition for work carried out. The award categories included public sector health professionals, healthcare workers, doctors, NGO or industry workers, and field staff of a NGO or industry tackling COVID-19.

Following an extensive review of applications by the external jury and IATC team at Engro Foundation, eight recipients were chosen from diverse backgrounds. This year’s IATC award recipients include Dr. Sonia Qureshi, Dr. Osama Hussain, Dr. Syed Ghazanfar Saleem, Bilqees Abdul Shakoor, Asif Abul Hasan, Raja Muhammad Iqbal, Naveed Pervez and Sana Sharif. Each recipient will be given a cash award of PKR 500,000 in recognition of their efforts.

Their inspiring stories showcase how they are assisting medical camps, providing essential relief services, setting up emergency protocols, supporting families of individuals with Down syndrome, conducting information dissemination and awareness drives, fundraising for ration supplies and establishing free legal aid clinics.

According to Ghias Khan - President & CEO of Engro Corporation and Trustee of Engro Foundation, "The IATC award recipients truly depict how heroes are born in times of crisis. As a Pakistani organization committed to solving some of the most pressing issues of our time, it is a very humbling experience for us to learn from and celebrate the achievements of these individuals and institutions who rose to the occasion. Together, InshAllah we will emerge stronger and united as a nation from this pandemic.”

Favad Soomro, Head of Engro Foundation, added that, “While the IATC award recipients deserve special acknowledgement, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude and respect to all frontline heroes. Their service to the communities, and Pakistan at large, has helped mitigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.”

Earlier in April, Mr. Hussain Dawood – Chairman of Engro Corporation and Dawood Hercules Corporation, had announced a PKR 1 billion pledge to support COVID-19 relief efforts on multiple fronts as well.