Pakistan: Winners of Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards 2008 Announced in Islamabad
14 of 20 Best Microentrepreneur Awards Go To Women, 20 Additional Awards for Loan Officers
”All my life people have taunted me and called me ‘Jaddi’ – a worthless woman,” recalls Sahibzaadi, who lives in Bhitshah Matyaari district, Sind. Sahibzaadi is 24 years old and physically disabled. Living in extreme poverty with one goat to pass for sustenance, she felt, in her own words, “inferior and useless” – her disability standing in the way of a marriage and even normal friendships. That was two years ago. Today Sahibzaadi’s reality is starkly different: three microloans later she runs a successful tailoring business and used her savings to buy a milk cow which she uses to supplement her income. Sahibzaadi earns Rs. 7,000 a month – a far cry from the days when she and her aging father ate one meal a day – and she has plans to further diversify her business by training other women for a fee.
Abdul Rehman lives in Norsa, a small village in AJK. Before he received his first loan from a local microfinance institution, Abdul Rehman was supporting a family of seven on less than Rs. 2,000. Education was never a priority, and since the age of 13 Abdul Rehman worked as an apprentice at a local mechanic shop. Realizing that his wages were just not enough, Abdul Rehman approached Kiran Welfare Organization and the rest, as they say, is history. Not only was he able to start his own motorbike repair service but over the course of three years, also managed to start a spare parts business and most recently has diversified in to buying and selling used motor bikes. Abdul makes Rs. 35,000 a month – all his younger siblings are enrolled in school, and he recently bought and renovated the home he lives in. “I want to now find an able auto mechanic as a partner and further expand my business,” he says, like the shrewd business man he is.
Vidia Begum from Mithi in Tharparkar is planning to set up a vocational training center for women in her community. She earns Rs. 100,000 a month and runs a well-established embroidery and tailoring business and has enrolled her children, including her daughters, in a good school. Just three short years ago, Vidia was trying to make ends meet with four young children and a husband, a staunch “rajput,” who considered work for women beneath him. Today he feels differently – Vidia managed to convince him by working from home. With her substantial earnings, she now not only commands his respect, but also that of her community, which once frowned upon her endeavors.
Sahibzaadi, Vidia and Abdul Rehman are among the 20 winners of Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards program 2008 who have all, with a little help from microfinance, altered their circumstances in spite of the overwhelming disadvantages of poverty. Organized in collaboration with the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) in Pakistan and funded entirely through a Citi Foundation grant, the awards program seeks to recognize, reward, and celebrate the successes of exceptional men and women who, through creativity, resourcefulness, and the intelligent use of microfinance effected positive change throughout their communities.
These 20 winners and their respective loan officers were formally announced at a special ceremony on December 1 in the presence of Advisory Council members, CEO of PPAF Kamal Hyat; Citi Country Officer and managing director of Citi Pakistan, Arif Usmani; and chief guest Mr. Shaukat Tarin, Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance, Revenue, Economic Affairs and Statistics, along with representatives of the government, social and corporate sectors.
Launched in August 2008, the program received more than 300 nominations from Punjab, Sind, Balochistan and the North West Frontier Provinces. The process of short listing involved several rounds of screening, field interviews, as well as the final jury round with the Advisory Council. Held a day before the ceremony, the jury round was followed by a two hour long training session on business best practices. A total of ten winners and ten runners-up, including four special awards for “Most Innovative Entrepreneur” and “Overcoming Adversity” were announced.
The winners were awarded PKR two million in prize money and awards were given as follows:
National
Best Female Entrepreneur: Ms. Sahibzaadi, SAFWCO, Matiari
Best Male Entrepreneur: Mr. Abdul Rehman (OPD), Norsa, AJK
Runner up Best Female Entrepreneur: Ms. Sofia, Khushali, Bank Peshawar
Runner up Best Male Entrepreneur: Mr. Huzoor Bux, AMRDWO, Matiari
Best Regional Entrepreneur
Ms. Taj Bibi, STP, Quetta
Ms. Mahira Bibi, First Microfinance Bank, Chitral
Mr. Shabbir Ahmed, NRDP, Narowal
Ms. Safia Ali, AHAN IDSP, Quetta
Best Regional Entrepreneur – Runner Up
Ms. Rukhsana Saleem, STP, Quetta
Ms. Bilqees Fatima, STP, Quetta
Ms. Nageen Akhtar, Rahnuma, Peshawar
Ms. Fazilat, SWWS, Swabi
Ms. Vidia, TRDP, Mithi
Mr. Niaz Ahmed, Khushali Bank, Sukkur
Ms. Kubra Asghar, First Women’s Bank, Sheikhupura
Ms. Shehnaz Akhtar, NRSP, Khushab
Shamim Akhter, OPD, Gujranwalla,
Muhammad Naeem, SAFWCO, Matiari
Munsif Khan, SUNGI, Abbotabad
Ms. Marzia Bibi, AHAN STP, Quetta
Special Awards
Most Innovative Idea – Mr. Shabbir Ahmed, NRDP, Narowal
Most Innovative Idea – Ms. Kubra Asghar, Shiekhupura
Most Success in Overcoming Adversity – Ms Nageen Akhtar, Peshawer
Most Success in Overcoming Adversity – Ms. Vidia, Mithi
Member Advisory Council and CEO Mojaz Foundation, Ramesh Singh Arora, said, "The candidates we interviewed all had one thing in common – an overriding desire to better themselves. It has been a privilege to be associated with this program – kudos to Citi and PPAF."
Chief guest Mr. Shaukat Tarin said, "This award program is a good initiative and will go a long way in creating awareness for financial mainstreaming of microcredit programs. Poverty alleviation is not an easy task and microfinance is a globally proven tool to help in poverty eradication and we are deeply committed to encouraging and recognizing its role in Pakistan's social development through this program."
Citi Country Officer and Managing Director Arif Usmani said, "The award program is a global effort by Citi Foundation, taking place in more than 20 countries. The Microentrepreneurship Awards program has been taking place in Pakistan for the past four years and its greatest success lies in increasing awareness of the important role that microentrepreneurs play in their local economies and the significance of microfinance as a tool of poverty alleviation”.
Overcome by her award, Best National Female, Sahibzaadi said, “This award means much more than money, for a ‘Jaddi’ like me, it means that I am worth something in the eyes of the world.”
Citi recognizes the global benefits of a robust microfinance industry such as poverty reduction and local sustainable economic development and has worked extensively in this regard through its awards program, Global Microfinance Network Strengthening Program, the PMN, financial education for women program in interior Sind with TRDP and nationwide with Tameer Foundation Trust, product development initiatives with Kashf Foundation, as well as equity placements with a microfinance bank. Citi also arranged the first commercial funding transaction for a microfinance institution in Pakistan in 2007 – a landmark transaction that opened up alternative sources of funding for the local sector.
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