Dr Erfa Iqbal, who coordinates the Prime Minister's development program for Southern Punjab, made a strong case for socio-economic empowerment of people being a key not only to progress of the people but also to international security in the interconnected world.
The development package, Dr Iqbal manages as Additional Principal Staff Officer to the Prime Minister, focuses on empowerment of women through establishment of industrial units and promotion of medium enterprises in rural areas through public-private partnerships.
"Women account for 50 per cent of workforce and their participation at local level traditional projects including weaving, crafts, embroidery and a host of other products helps lift families out of poverty ---- and offer young people and communities incentives to use their energies for development and at the same time resist and reject any extremist ideoligies," she said.
Dr Iqbal also read out a message of Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, who held out a firm commitment to facilitate foreign investment and drew attention of the American businesses to the tremendsous entrepreneurial opportunities existing in various sectors of the Pakistani economy. Prime Minister Gilani keenly follows progress in the grassroots development programs and the government would diversify these programs but it needs support of international friends and businesses, she said.
In her presentation, Dr Iqbal, who is currently in the US as an Eisenhower Fellow, said the pilot projects have led to hopeful signs with women in poverty-hit areas joining in big numbers, which, otherwise, would not be the case in conservative segments of the society. The iniitial success in drawing women to skilled work have been possible due to women managers' heading workplaces and their reaching out to women as well as working towards realizing babycare and healthcare facilities.
The government plans to extend the projects to remote and militancy -hit areas to bolster local development through maximum participation of women.
Members of World Affairs Council, Washington and American Society of Industrial Security attended the event co-sponsored by Gateway Consortium Foundation and City of Sullivan, Missouri.
During her stay, Erfa Iqbal will also make presentations to Pakistani-American organizations to apprise them of the effectiveness of the projects and encourage their participation through investment.