Institute of Peace and Development Studies (IPD) in collaboration with Hanns-Seidel-Foundation organized International Conference in Islamabad. “Selected Young Emerging Women Leaders from Gilgit-Baltistan, FATA, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir were invited to participate and interact with seasoned women leaders/mentors. The workshop covered several important thematic areas related to issues of women and leadership.
Masarrat Misbah and Ayesha Taslim participated in the conference. Masarrat Misbah led the session on “Setups and Business/Entrepreneurs”. She focussed on Women Breaking New Grounds with practical examples of her success. She also shared the hurdles that she came across and how the problems were solved through perseverance.
Ayesha Taslim attended the session in which speakers highlighted Challenges for Women in Education. Zubaida Jalal, former Federal Minister for Education spoke about policy formulation during her tenure which unfortunately could not be implemented due to change in ruling government. Fauzia Khan, Head of Curriculum Wing from Sindh talked about importance of curriculum in the education system.
Ayesha Taslim pointed out that all speeches end with apologies because of lack of implementation various reason including change of governments. This happens because systems are not institutionalized. Most decisions revolve around individuals and their vested interests. She also drew the attention of the participants to the poor plight of government run primary schools. These points generated a lot of discussion revolving around finding solutions. Regarding curriculum it was pointed out that the education should lead to change of mind set and not just qualifying for a certificate.
