The other side: Dawood Group’s arm to promote natural habitat

To start road shows to highlight impact of environmental degradation.

KARACHI: The Dawood Foundation (TDF), the philanthropic arm of the Dawood Group, has taken it upon itself to promote Pakistan’s natural habitat and encourage people to preserve it.

Starting in a few days, road shows featuring small documentaries made in places like the Margalla mountain range, will be shown in small towns and cities across the country, said TDF CEO Sabrina Dawood on Tuesday.

“These documentaries have been shot in national parks. They are not only meant to highlight the impact of environmental degradation but also to encourage local communities to do something about preserving it,” she said in a meeting with a group of journalists.

This is also an attempt on the part of the foundation to show the “other side” of Pakistan, which largely remains in international news for terrorism-related incidents, she said.



TDF, established by the group’s founder Ahmed Dawood in 1960s, runs multiple educational institutions and has donated for various other causes. The family does not share details about the contributions.

Shahzada Dawood, a TDF trustee, says the group keeps on donating funds as the need arises. “We don’t have any specific percentage fixed for the purpose. It’s a continuous process.”

Sabrina and Shahzada are Ahmed Dawood’s grandchildren. Their father is Hussain Dawood, the multibillionaire who controls a majority stake in Engro Corporation and Hub Power Company.

After the nationalisation of industries in the 1970s, TDF scaled back its activities and almost vanished from mainstream news.

But last year’s appointment of Sabrina as the CEO indicates that the group wants to spend more on charitable causes.

One of the first few initiatives of the foundation was the establishment of Dawood College of Engineering and Technology in Karachi in the 1960s to meet anticipated demand of engineers in metallurgical, chemical, autos, textiles and other industries.

The college was also nationalised.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 9^th,  2015.

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