SIALKOT: The Trade Deve­lop­ment Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) must facilitate and encourage women entrepreneurs by giving them all trade and export-related incentives for their capacity building, Dr Mari­yam Nouman, Chairperson Sial­kot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) Committee for Women Entrepreneurs, said on Friday.

Talking to Dawn, Dr Nouman, a leading sports goods manufacturer and exporter from Sialkot said, “Pakistan should follow the examples of Turkey which has given several incentives in finance and taxation to its women entrepreneurs, besides building their capacity of doing business through providing them the proper guidelines for developing their businesses.”

“The industry in Sialkot is facing international pressure to bring women in work force as well as including them into decision making process.”

“Turkey has brought the women ahead in every sphere of life during the last 16 years due to which it has made rapid economic progress and social development,” she said.

Dr Nouman urged the government and private sector to provide women maximum opportunities to grow at all levels and urged for capacity building programmers targeted specifically at women entrepreneurs.

More than 230 female entrepreneurs have been successfully running their small and big businesses in Sialkot while women also comprise a sizeable chunk of the labour force.

“There is also a need for development of the mutual linkages between women entrepreneurs and the academia for bringing maximum women into the business by giving them the necessary trainings on industry-related courses,” she stressed.

Earlier, addressing a meeting of SCCI Committee for Women Entrepreneurs, Dr Nouman said the growing number of women entrepreneurs in Sialkot calls for setting up an exclusive women chamber of commerce and industry in the city.

“Sialkot-based women entrepreneurs would soon get their own Sialkot Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SWCCI),” she assured.

There is a dire need to mainstream women entrepreneurs so that they could play an important role in strengthening the national economy, the meeting observed.

The committee chairperson pledged to make all out efforts for promoting Sialkot-based women entrepreneurs and bringing maximum women in business and educate men to let their women join work.

On the occasion, Coordinator SCCI’s Women Resource Center (WRC) Mehmooda Nadeem Butt said that women chambers of commerce already exist in Lahore, Multan and Bahawalpur and Sialkot will have one soon.

SWCCI will be a well-organised platform for Sialkot-based women entrepreneurs for exploring and developing their business potential as well, she added.

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2017