Category: Education

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir)  The Citizens Foundation (TCF) held the final 14^th Annual Awards ceremony to honor the year-long achievements and performance of its teachers and principals. Various award ceremonies were held in the major cities of Pakistan, with the final awards ceremony in Karachi. More than 2,000 teachers and principals of Karachi and interior Sindh along with the head office staff and senior management participated the event. The awards were presented by the CEO and other senior management to the teachers with the best competency this year.

The awards were presented to teachers for extraordinary performance this year in the following categories:

1. Service and Attendance awards
2. Teacher Competency awards
3. Whole School Index (WSI) Awards – Performance on overall school KPIs
4. Board / Matric awards

Awards were also presented to the students with exceptional performance in the matric board exams.

TCF is the largest private employer of women in the private sector with more than 12,000 female teachers and principals throughout the country-wide network of 1,482 school units in Pakistan, from Karachi to Kashmir. These teachers and principals are an integral part of TCF’s education movement who strive to provide quality education to more than 200,000 students every day, nurturing them become agents of positive change. These teachers take the journey of enlightenment every day to TCF schools in remotest areas, making quality education possible for the children in these less privileged communities.

“A good teacher can build a future of a child and change his/ her life forever. A good principal can run a school with discipline and empathy, guiding the teachers and students in the right direction. The success of TCF is, to a very extent, due to our teachers. All the principals and teachers are personally invested in the intellectuals, moral and spiritual development of their students. They take ownership of their students and nurture them as their own children. The improving results of our students and their success in professional life is a testament of the dedication of our teachers,” said CEO & President of TCF Syed Asaad Ayub Ahmad.

TCF understands that specialized principals’ and teachers’ training is a prerequisite for imparting quality education in all its schools. While teachers have a direct impact on students in classrooms, principals affect all students in the school. Our training team, therefore, aligns an extensive teacher and principal training programme every year. For teachers, the modules are designed based on their training needs assessment ranging from Classroom Management to Motivating Learners to Usage of Visual Aids. Principals on the other hand receive training for effective school leadership. Their training includes courses like Communication Skills, Conflict Management, Delegation, Prioritizing and Taking Action. The objective is to produce and sustain a positive learning environment that generates strong learning outcomes in classrooms, ensuring students’ academic success. For more engaged learning, TCF has also rolled out e-Learning AV rooms at different school locations. Teachers have been trained to utilize these AV rooms for their training and also to teach students in a more interactive.

TCF believes that good teachers are its greatest asset and will continue to invest in them for the best education outcomes. Teachers at TCF, with their ambition and commitment, enable the children to learn and understand this curriculum based on the learning needs of the children who represent different ethnic backgrounds.

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir)  The Engro Leadership Academy has been officially inaugurated in the premises of the Karachi School of Business & Leadership (KSBL). Engro, with the strong support of its Board and Chairman, has set itself the goal of having a high-performance culture and creating value via exceptional people. The Engro Leadership Academy endeavours to serve as the developing ground for the next generation of Pakistani leadership. Its aim will be to prepare 21st century leaders through a proven model of development led by world-class consulting firm McKinsey & Company, which has helped bring the Academy to fruition.

Founder & Chairman of KSBL, Chairman of Engro Corporation and The Dawood Foundation, Hussain Dawood, passionately believes that investment in human developmentfar outweighs short-term financial returns. At the inauguration, the Chairman stressed upon the need of developing people in Pakistan who are persons of trust, and of competence, to lead successful institutions. He said, “This is the beginning of a journey of life-long learning for individuals striving to improve their strength of character, to trust and respect themselves, and then to inspire that trust in others.”

The President of Engro Corporation, Ghias Khan, also spoke at the ceremony. He discussed the philosophy of cultivating and retaining talent at Engro. Mr. Khan said, “We realize that development of leaders requires a fine balance between practical on-the-job learning, in-classroom trainings, and self-reflection. With this purpose in mind, we have built the ELA, which will help ignite people’s personal transformations and equip them to drive change at Engro and beyond.” He further thanked the Chairman for his vision and McKinsey for their guidance along the way.

“As Knowledge Partners to the Engro Leadership Academy, McKinsey Academy has developed a robust curriculum to grow leadership skills across the organization. The programs aim to develop talent, instill an entrepreneurial mind-set and build decision-making capabilities. The leadership model incorporates 6 main competencies and identifies 22 behaviors that enable effective leadership in the Engro context. The courses will provide a blended learning experience that will include classroom sessions, fieldwork, experiential and digital learning modules and bespoke content customized to the Engro Leadership Model.

Salman Ahmad, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company, said: “As the first company in Pakistan to launch a bespoke corporate academy to groom its existing and future leaders, Engro is setting a new standard for leadership development. The programs apply both best practice as well as cutting-edge techniques for learning and capacity building, anchored in tailored leadership journeys for each participant. We believe deeply that the quality of leadership is the most enduring source of competitive advantage for organizations and the most critical enabler of sustainable, high performance cultures. We are honoured to be Knowledge Partners in this program.”

The Academy is poised to become an integral part of the people transformation journey at Engro, and includes courses on leading self, leading teams, leading business, and leading change. The Academy will extend its services and leadership philosophy to private and public-sector players as well, through customized content based on respective institutional and organizational needs.

This is to announce that, after 30 years at the helm of Oxford University Press (OUP) Pakistan Ameena Saiyid OBE, Sitara-e-Imtiaz, Knight of the Order of Arts and Literature (Government of France) has announced her retirement. She would like to wish her former colleagues well and to thank those who worked closely with her to help OUP Pakistan grow. She will continue to work tirelessly as always to promote education,  the culture of reading and writing in Pakistan as well as literature festivals.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)  TV actor Hareem Farooq and Ahsan Khan visited The Citizen Foundation’s (TCF) Qayumabad campus and signed an agreement to become goodwill ambassadors. Both the celebrities showed their commitment towards TCF’s mission to provide quality education for the less privileged. They will support the ongoing efforts of TCF by creating awareness for the need to create education opportunities for all the children of Pakistan regardless of their caste, creed, religion or ethnicity.

On behalf of TCF, Isfandyar Inayat, GM Outreach signed the agreement and welcomed Hareem and Ahsan on board for joining the TCF’s education movement. Expressing his thoughts, Isfandyar said, “We need to highlight the emergency for the need to educate all children because it is their basic right. I am so grateful to Ahsan and Hareem for becoming a part of the big TCF family and for graciously agreeing to help us in talking about this very important issue. I have no doubt that these efforts will help us in reaching out to many more out of school children.”

Education remains one of the biggest socio-economic issues being faced by Pakistan. Currently, there are more than 22.6 million out of school children. This makes Pakistan the country with second highest number of out of school children in Pakistan. That’s why we are facing an education emergency and all hands need to be on the deck to create the capacity for providing education for these out of school children. Statistics reveal that 1/3^rd of out-of-school children do not attend because education is too expensive or the school is too far. The TCF school model was built to solve for these issues.

“Education is the best gift that we can give to any child. I visited a TCF school earlier this week and it was one of the most incredible days of my life. After winding through a couple of narrow lanes of machar colony, we reached the purpose-built TCF school in the heart of the community. I have joined hands with TCF to support their mission to provide quality education for the less privileged,” said Ahsan after signing the agreement.

“Education makes a child’s universe limitless – so just imagine where Pakistan can be if all our children are able to get this basic civil right and shine bright?” said Hareem while sharing her thoughts.

The Economist has called The Citizens Foundation (TCF) ‘perhaps the largest network of independently run schools in the world.’ TCF has nearly 1,500 school units in 700 sites across Pakistan where children were previously out-of-school. TCF has built schools in the heart of rural communities and urban slums so schools are a walking distance away from the children. The

Foundation is the largest private employer of women in Pakistan with an all-female faculty of 12,000 teachers and principals, encouraging parents to send their girls to school. TCF has 220,000 students this year. Nearly half (48%) of TCF students are girls. Eighty-eight percent of TCF alumni have gone to college and 71% are employed.

Islamabad (Muhammad Yasir) –  Zong 4G’s impetus for a prosperous Pakistan is making way to reduce the social divide inherent in the society. Thus, in order to highlight the plight to serve underprivileged children the ‘New Hope’, volunteers of Pakistan No.1 Data Network, Zong 4G, spent a day with young students of Mashal Model School.            

Scores of deserving young students from Mashal Model School were greeted with all joy and jubilation after Zong 4G, reached out to them and made special arrangements dedicated to these children. 

Extending a heartfelt gesture of humanity, Zong 4G’s New Hope Volunteers took time from their otherwise hectic professional schedules to spend a day out with these children to bring smile on their innocent faces. Marked with colorful activities including tour to a famous fast food restaurant and sports, the event gave these children a respite from their tiresome academic routine and brunt of social challenges they are faced with.

Zong 4G is providing these socially marginalized children a prospect to uplift themselves from the realm of poverty. Previously, the New Hope volunteers of the company have delivered computer literacy sessions as well as established computer lab in Mashal Model School that have rendered some transformative life experiences for the underprivileged.

As a socially aware organization, Zong 4G is committed to create meaningful impact in the country through its wide-ranging initiatives, straddling across a broad range of social issues.

 

Knorr Noodles launches social media fund-raiser enabling consumers to participate by simply sharing the launch video

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Knorr Noodles has partnered with The Citizen’s Foundation to provide school books for 10,000 children across Pakistan. People across Pakistan will be able to support the cause by simply sharing the launch video from the TCF Facebook page, with Knorr Noodles contributing Rs 100 for every share.

Knorr Noodles announced this initiative during a Children’s Day Carnival organized at a local hotel for TCF Children. The Carnival was organized as part of the Knorr Boriyat Busters children’s entertainment platform, which is one of the biggest children’s television shows in Pakistan. TCF children were able to enjoy a host of Boriyat Buster games during a fun filled evening of festivity. This was followed by the launch of the social media fund-raising campaign to provide school books for deserving children.

Shazia Syed, Chairperson & CEO, Unilever Pakistan, reinforced the value of education, saying, “Knorr’s partnership with TCF is powered by our shared vision of eliminating illiteracy from the country. We are working together to ensure that we can promise our children an enlightened future that is safeguarded by education. I hope that the impact of this initiative translates into increased access to literacy for the children of Pakistan.”

Ateed Riaz, CEO & Co-Founder of The Citizen’s Foundation, expressed his appreciation for the partnership, saying “Over 22 million children are out of school in Pakistan, that’s why education needs to be our biggest priority. This Children’s Day, with the support of Knorr, TCF renews its commitment to enable quality education for the less privileged and create equal education opportunities for all. A good education can change not one but many lives associated with it; the power of education can uplift an entire community. I encourage everyone to support this heart-warming initiative taken by Knorr so that together we can bust illiteracy and create more agents of positive change. Our children are our future.”

Knorr Boriyat Busters is Pakistan’s largest entertainment tv show for children. It came into existence to help kids bust boriyat, by entertaining them with engaging content which not only includes challenging games, but also a lot of fun, masti, hungama along with celebrities, gifts prizes, music and dances. By joining hands with TCF, Knorr is now extending the mission of Boriyat Busters to also bust illiteracy.

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) ACCA Pakistan and British Deputy High Commission held a conversation in Karachi on the ‘Ease of doing business in Pakistan’ and ‘Global Competitiveness Index’.
These indices rank countries against each other based on how the regulatory environment is conducive to business operations.
ACCA hosted this discussion in line with its commitment to deliver value for the economies where it operates and the pledge of ACCA members in Pakistan to drive GDP growth by 7% as well as improving the ranking of Pakistan to top 50 for ‘ease of doing business’ and ‘global competitiveness index’ for the next 5 years; ACCA and ACCA members continue to contribute and collaborate with thought leaders to focus on high impact actions as a key priority.
Elin Burns – British Deputy High Commissioner and Director for Trade for Pakistan, in her address said, “It is great to see the government on a federal and provincial level making progress on creating ease of doing business and mobilising domestic and foreign investment. These reforms, bringing Pakistan 11 places up in the World Bank’s latest report are important for Pakistan’s economic prosperity and improving the overall business climate. ACCA’s commitment to this agenda is commendable and we hope to see more organisations taking a lead role on this front.”

The event was marked by a high-octane panel discussion which was moderated by Faisal Qamar, Managing Partner, HRSG BPO. The conversation leaders included Naeem Zamindar, former Minister of State and former Chair of Pakistan Board of Investment, Syed Muhammad Shabbar Zaidi,Territory Senior Partner & Chairman, A.F. Ferguson & Co. Chartered Accountants, Ehsan Malik, Chief Executive Officer, Pakistan Business Council, Richard Morin, Managing Director, Pakistan Stock Exchange, Syed Irfan Farooq Memon, Group Head – Internal Audit, United Bank Limited, Naz Khan, Managing Director, X-Petroleum Limited and Umer Jalil Anwer, Chief Financial Officer, Siemens
(Pakistan) Engineering Company Limited. The panellists concluded that the implementation of tangible and critical changes in legislation and professional capability set were essential to improve Pakistan’s ranking. They also emphasised on the importance of enabling the right talent and highlighted the key drivers for improving business function was social and financial inclusion of women and attracting local and foreign investments.
“Pakistan has improved its ranking by 11 spots in the World Bank's latest Ease of Doing Business rankings, climbing to 136th from 147th last year. It is remarkable but not sufficient, we need to improve and work diligently on the reform agenda. At ACCA we strongly believe that mountains do move and the strategic business leader across Pakistan has to demonstrate persistence and character, “said Sajjeed Aslam, Head of ACCA Pakistan.

The Dawood Foundation MagnifiScience in collaboration with Thar Foundation ignites the spark for science in children of Thar

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir)  Thousands of children from across Thar gathered with excitement to play, learn, imagine, explore and discover the wonders of science at The Dawood Foundation MagnifiScience Thar Exhibition. TDF MagnifiScience Thar Exhibition is being organized in collaboration with the Thar Foundation; Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC); Engro Corporation and Engro Powergen Thar (Pvt.) Limited.

TDF MagnifiScience Exhibition is an initiative by The Dawood Foundation that brings Pakistan’s leading corporations and public sector organisations along with academia, entrepreneurs and specialists in various science fields on a single platform to promote the culture of science, technology and critical thinking in the country. The exhibition was held in Karachi in 2016 and 2017 and was the biggest science exhibition in the country in terms of attendance, reach and impact. The exhibitions were able to attract over 50,000 visitors each year.

The MagnifiScience Exhibition by The Dawood Foundation aims to make quality education accessible for all and encourage the quest for Science in a remote area like Thar where literacy rate is quite low. The idea of bringing TDF MagnifiScience to Thar stemmed from Thar Foundation’s philosophy to create avenues for children and students of Thar to interact with functional school experience.

TDF MagnifiScience Thar Exhibition is a two-day event which is free of charge for public to experience science through various interactive activities and exhibits made by professionals. Enthusiastic children explored interesting themes such as Optical Illusions, Forces and Motion, Sound, Mind Games and Health. Each theme has exhibits designed by professionals to explain the basic principles of science and their practical demonstration.

In Optical Illusion theme, children were amazed when they saw the ‘Talking Head Illusion’ where one sees the head without the body and Infinity Box which creates endless duplicates of your faces. Exhibits in Health theme gave children an enriching learning experience about human body including showing how veins and arteries work and how different human body functions.

Young scientists formed groups to make structures with dowels and rubber bands in Forces and Motion theme while some engineered pathways with PVC pipes. Observing forces like magnetic fields and sound waves through demonstration thrilled children in the theme.

Sharing her views on hosting the exhibition in Thar, General Manager of The Dawood Foundation Syed Fasihuddin Biyabani said “TDF MagnifiScience is nationally recognized as an innovative method of promoting science literacy in society through informal learning. It is encouraging to see that students and teachers of Thar showing enthusiasm to learn science. We believe that it is important to give the students of Thar a chance to experience science like their counterparts in the metropolis.”

A large number of attendees belonging from all walks of life including politicians, educationists, specialists, entrepreneurs, science clubs, environmentalists and many others attended the exhibition. It was also open for the public and private schools in Thar, coalescing on a single platform to talk and exploring the wonders of science.

Commenting on the collaboration with The Dawood Foundation for MagnifiScience exhibition in Thar, Sabeen Shah – Manager Education for Thar Foundation said: “Thar Foundation aims to provide access to quality education to all students and children of Islamkot as part of its adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals accelerated model. Although Thar ranks low on Human Development Index, we believe that it has great potential and talent in terms of its students. The TDF MagnifiScience Thar Exhibition will help hone the interest of these children towards science and learning and will eventually prove to be a game changer in the region.”

Sharing his experience with the TDF MagnifiScience Thar Exhibition, Mohammad Khan from TDF said “While aggregating the MagnifiScience to Thar this time we went ahead and learnt the different scientific reasoning in the ingenious lifestyle of Thar, such as its architecture, earthenware, water reservoirs. It was fascinating for us to learn and analogize it to modern techniques. I think MagnifiScience has become a two-way process for us, with self-learning as well as a public education.”

 

TDF MagnifiScience is open for public and is being held at TCF School, Engro Campus, Islamkot Tharparkar on 26th and 27th October from 9am to 4pm.

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) JCR-VIS Credit Rating Company Limited (JCR-VIS) has upgraded Non-Profit Organization Governance Rating of The Citizens Foundation (TCF) to ‘GR-9+’ (GR-Nine Plus) from ‘GR-9’ (GR-Nine). On a scale from 1 to 10, rating of GR 9 and above reflects a ‘Very High Level of Governance’. Previous rating action was announced on February 24, 2016. The improved rating shows TCF’s continued commitment to quality education for the less privileged and shows that the organization manages its growing scale of operations in the most efficient way.

NPO governance ratings are based on a composite evaluation of the level of regulatory compliance, mission and program strength, governing body, executive management, utilization of funds and transparency, self-regulation and stakeholders’ relations. Commitment of the governing body and executive management are reflected by the significant growth in number of schools with over 220,000 enrolled students across Pakistan.

The assigned rating by JCR-VIS to TCF incorporates focus on quality education in line with its mission and efficiency in fund utilization. Rating also reflects on the governance infrastructure in place at the organization with effectively functioning board and board committees, strong focus on transparency and adequate internal control framework. Support structure is also being continuously upgraded by bringing in professional management and the implementation of more sophisticated systems and procedures.

Speaking about the rating of GR9+, TCF CEO Syed Asaad Ayub Ahmad said, “We, at The Citizens Foundation believe in operating as a professionally managed not-for-profit organization. There’s an even greater responsibility on us to maintain complete transparency and ensure that the funds entrusted upon us are utilized as carefully as possible. We are accountable for every single penny that we receive as a donation. The improved credit rating is the result of the high level of commitment of every TCF employee and their unwavering resolution towards the cause of education. I am also grateful to everyone who is supporting TCF in our mission to educate the less privileged children of our country.”

Given that a large chunk of TCF’s network comprised primary schools, management focused on addition of secondary school units during 2017. Moreover, strong focus on qualification and training of teachers, academic result achieved by students and initiatives such as Curriculum Development and Learning Management System was also emphasized for improving quality of education.

Change in ratings also incorporate growing quantum of donations with majority of donations being generated through repeat donors. As a result, financial strength of TCF is considered sound with overheads remaining within internal benchmark of 10% of operating expenses. Funds generated through donations have grown in line with increasing expenses and expansion in operation.

First of its kind exhibition at TCF-Engro Campus in Islamkot targets children and students from schools and universities across Tharparkar

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) Continuing the mission to make quality education accessible for all, The Dawood Foundation (TDF) in collaboration with The Thar Foundation, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC), Engro Powergen Thar Private Limited (EPTL) and Engro Corporation will be organizing the first TDF Magnifi-Science Thar Exhibition on 26^th and 27^th October in Islamkot, Tharparkar district.

TDF Magnifi-Science Exhibition is a collaborated effort of some of Pakistan’s leading corporations and public sector organisations along with academia, entrepreneurs and specialists in various science fields to promote the culture of science, technology and critical thinking in the country. The Exhibition is the largest science gathering in the country, in terms of audience, reach and impact.

In Tharparkar, the statistics of student performance in Science and Math is quite alarming. The latest Standardized Achievement Test conducted in Sindh reflected a poor understanding of Math and science in Tharparkar which reveals a score of 27.38 in Science and 30.04 in Math for Grade 5 students, whereas Grade 8 students scored 25.6 in Math and 26.8 in Science. There needs to be an effort beyond “classroom level” and in this part of the world where education is not a standardized facility, educational campaigns and events such as TDF Magnifi-Science can really make a difference and bridge the gap between practical study and school curriculum.

TDF Magnifi-Science Thar Exhibition will allow visitors, including students, teachers and general public to experience science through various interactive activities. The Exhibition is segmented into interesting themes such as Optical Illusions, Forces and Motion, Sound, Mind Games and Health. Each theme will have exhibits designed by professionals to explain the basic principles of science and their practical demonstration.

Sharing her views on hosting the exhibition in Thar, CEO of The Dawood Foundation Sabrina Dawood said “TDF Magnifi-Science is nationally recognized as an innovative method of promoting science literacy in society through informal learning. It is important to give the students of Thar a chance to experience science like their counterparts in the metropolis.”

Commenting on the exhibition, Shamsuddin Shaikh – CEO of SECMC and Thar Foundation said: “Thar Foundation has adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a model for inclusive development and creating broad-based impact across key sectors. The exhibition gels in with our strategy to enhance provision of a functional schooling experience for children and students of Tharparkar. The region of Thar is in need of such interventions given that the literacy rates stands at an abysmally low levels of 52% and 17% for males and females respectively.”

TDF Magnifi-Science is an open for public event and will be held at TCF School, Engro Campus, Islamkot Tharparkar on 26^th and 27^th October from 9am to 4pm.