Lahore, The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) is collaborating with the International Trade Center’s ITC-FCDO Program, “Revenue Mobilization for Investment and Trade (ReMIT)” to formulate a dedicated SME policy tailored for women entrepreneurs in Pakistan. A technical team from ReMIT visited SMEDA to discuss the potential partnership, where alarming statistics about women’s involvement in the nation's labour force and entrepreneurship were presented, alongside the latest initiatives by the Pakistani government to promote women in the business realm.
According to a news release by Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority, the meeting, spearheaded by Mr. Hamid Ateeque Sarwar from ReMIT, was attended by key stakeholders including Mr. Asim Javaid Hashmi, the Managing Director of Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC), and Dr. Shehla Javaid Akram, the Founder President of the Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry. SMEDA's team was led by Mr. Socrat Aman Rana, General Manager of Central Support. The gathering spotlighted the disparity in labor force participation between men (67.9%) and women (21.4%), emphasizing that a mere 19% of these women are self-employed or independent workers.
The ReMIT team was briefed about the National SME Policy 2021 initiated by SMEDA under the guidance of the Ministry of Industries and Production (MoIP). This policy, which underscores the importance of female entrepreneurship, has spurred MoIP to set up a Consultative Group specifically aimed at supporting women-led SMEs.
Encouragingly, the Government of Pakistan is engaging with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) regarding a prospective 5-year agreement for the Women Inclusive Finance (WIF) Sector Development program. Within this framework, SMEDA is designated as a primary institutional implementation partner. Furthermore, SMEDA’s Policy and Planning GM, Ms. Nadia Jahangir Seth, disclosed that with ADB’s technical assistance, SMEDA had completed a study on the primary obstacles faced by Pakistani women entrepreneurs.
Recognizing the national significance of bolstering women in business, SMEDA has been actively seeking partnerships, including ties with the ADB, UN Women, and the ITC-FCDO program. ReMIT has recently expressed its intent to provide technical assistance to SMEDA in crafting the Women Entrepreneurship Policy. The collaborative discussion between ReMIT and SMEDA’s experts culminated in the decision to jointly curate an extensive action plan. This initiative aims to establish a comprehensive, women-centric SME policy and an actionable roadmap to guarantee its thorough execution.