‘Women contribute only 10% to GDP’

UAF VC says empowering women vital to achieve development

FAISALABAD: Women contribute only 10% to our country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), far less than the world average of 35%, said University of Agriculture (UAF) Vice Chancellor Dr Muhammad Iqbal Zafar.

He expressed these views at the graduation ceremony of the second and third batches of the Women Entrepreneurship Programme on Saturday.

Women empowerment, their socio economic activities and their entrepreneurship are essential for progress, in order to compete with the rest of the world, he maintained.

Empowering our women is a vital component to achieve the dream of development since they account for more than 50% of the total population, he said.



Talking about education, he said that women enrolment in graduate programmes on the campus has touched 50%. By educating women, we educate an entire family. We need to create awareness among citizens about girl’s education, he expressed.

It is never too late to start your own business; even senior citizens on the verge of retirement can start a business, he expressed.

Office of Research, Innovation and Commercialization (ORIC) Director Zahir Ahmed Zahir said that such a platform provides women with an opportunity to polish their entrepreneurial skills. Approximately 40 women from the first two batches are running their businesses successfully, he added.

In the modern era, only knowledge based economies are flourishing, said Programme Coordinator Hania Mudassor.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 6^th, 2018.