PFOWA charity bazaar brings diplomatic community closer

First lady commends attempt to promote informal diplomacy

ISLAMABAD: First Lady Begum Mehmooda Mamnoon Hussain on Sunday said vibrant nations should be actively engaged with contemporary cultures to keep themselves abreast with new trends apart from learning good things from others to develop their own societies.

Addressing at the annual charity bazaar of Pakistan Foreign Office Women’s Association (PFOWA) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Begum Mehmooda said that such events helped promote informal diplomacy and enhance harmony, brotherhood among nations.

Begum Mehmooda commended PFOWA for highlighting the Pakistani culture on the global level besides carrying out welfare activities to assist the underprivileged families belonging to Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

She added that the PFOWA charity Bazaar was a good opportunity for diplomats of different countries to learn about each other’s culture.

“No doubt, mixing of various cultures and people further strengthen the mutual relations between the nations,” she told the gathering of diplomats, ambassadors and their families.

She said it was heartening that PFOWA’s scope was expanding since the number of women in the Foreign Office had grown significantly.

She mentioned that for the first time in the country’s history, the Foreign Office was headed by a woman Foreign Secretary, which she said was an ample proof that Pakistani women were actively participating in every field along with their male counterparts.

Begum Mehmooda announced Rs0.5 million for PFOWA on behalf of Aiwan-e-Sadr. She also visited different stalls set up at the bazaar.

Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua said that this year’s bazaar marked the 70th anniversary of PFOWA’s foundation, having been first set up in 1947 by Shaista Ikramullah — a former ambassador of Pakistan. Her husband was Mohammad Ikramullah, the first foreign secretary of Pakistan.

Janjua said the Bazaar brought together a variety of cuisines from different countries and traditional artefacts, all of this apart from holding welfare activities with a noble cause.

PFOWA President Dr Ayesha Haq said that they reach out to hundreds of low-income families, helping them through disasters and in arranging marriages of their children.

The PFOWA charity bazaar, held at Foreign Ministry’s lawns, turned into a ‘cultural hub’ which saw stalls from countries such as China, Russian, Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Egypt, Bangladesh, Iran, Japan, Kyrgyz Republic, Lebanon, Palestine, Portugal, Romania, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Yemen.

A ‘Parade of nations’ was also held where children of diplomatic staffers, donning cultural dresses of their respective countries, presented tableaus and waved their national flags.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2017.