Pakistan\u2019s leading telecommunications and ICT provider, PTCL Group (PTCL & Ufone 4G) showcased its transformative Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, Ba-Ikhtiar, at Expand North Star \u2013 the world\u2019s largest startup and investor connector event, held as a part of GITEX 2024 in Dubai. The event provided a platform to highlight the success of Ba-Ikhtiar participants while promoting the initiative globally.
\nTwo outstanding women entrepreneurs of the Ba-Ikhtiar program, Farhat ul Ain and Marrium Hussain, represented the program at the event.
\nThese skilled individuals, who began as local embroidery artists in the humble suburbs of Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), have transformed into tech-enabled entrepreneurs through the training and support provided by Ba-Ikhtiar program.
\nPTCL & Ufone 4G selected them for the event to help them gain invaluable exposure and explore new business opportunities at one of the most important business and tech platforms in the world.
\nMarrium and Farhat showcased their eye-catching embroidery products at the Pakistan Enclosure, where they also engaged with international visitors, shared their inspiring success story and received recognition for their incredible journeys.
\nTheir participation in Expand North Star reflects PTCL Group\u2019s continued support for the program\u2019s graduates, which is essential for the sustainability of their enterprises.
\nSpeaking about their experience, Marrium Hussain said, \u201cI am deeply grateful to PTCL Group for providing us with this opportunity. The experience of being a part of such an important global platform has been life-changing and we look forward to newer avenues of growth for our enterprises.
\nWe met different people, gained exposure, and received appreciation for our work, encouraging us to dream bigger.\u201d
\nBa-Ikhtiar is a women empowerment initiative launched by PTCL Group in collaboration with the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF).
\nIt aims to equip small-scale female entrepreneurs with essential digital tools and skills to grow their enterprises. Participants receive smartphones with pre-loaded SIM cards from PTCL Group.
\nThey also receive hands-on training in digital skills, including using UPaisa mobile wallets and managing seller accounts on the e-commerce platform Daraz.
\nThe 15-day workshop enhances their artisan skills and imparts digital marketing techniques to help them expand their market to the global online space.
\nThe program also includes financial management training from U Microfinance Bank, empowering participants to manage their business finances efficiently. PTCL & Ufone 4G provided them with handsets and mobile connectivity to cover their data and voice needs.
\nSo far two batches of women entrepreneurs have graduated from the Ba-Ikhtiar Program, who now use their smartphones and free data to sell products through Daraz, receive payments via UPaisa, and dispatch orders through courier services.
\nTheir success stories inspire other women to pursue digital entrepreneurship to transform their socio-economic condition.
\nSharing his thoughts, Hatem Bamatraf, President and Group CEO, PTCL & Ufone 4G said, \u201cBa-Ikhtiar program mirrors our commitment to fostering digital inclusion and leveraging our digital resources to empower underserved social segments.
\nThe initiative enables women to become financially independent and facilitates their participation in Pakistan\u2019s growing digital economy.
\nIt lays a strong foundation for a sustainable future by ensuring that women play an active role in improving the country\u2019s socio-economic progress. I am immensely proud of these young entrepreneurs, who has shown resilience and commitment to be the future business leaders.\u201d
\nThe PTCL Group exhibit was a key feature of the Pakistan enclosure at Expand North Star. It received immense footfall, with Marrium and Farhat\u2019s story of their evolution from local artisans to digital entrepreneurs on the back of digital and financial technology inspiring profuse commendation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pakistan\u2019s leading telecommunications and ICT provider, PTCL Group (PTCL & Ufone 4G) showcased its transformative Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, Ba-Ikhtiar, at Expand North Star \u2013 the world\u2019s largest startup and investor connector event, held as a part of GITEX 2024 in Dubai. The event provided a platform to highlight the success of Ba-Ikhtiar participants …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":71804,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71793"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71793\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71827,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71793\/revisions\/71827"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}