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Shah Mahmood Qureshi and William Hague to be keynote speakers
LONDON, Oct 14 (APP)- Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and his British counterpart William Hague will be the keynote speakers at the launching of British-Pakistan Foundation here on October 16. They will join Foundation’s Chairman and a leading British Asian entrepreneur James Caan at the inaugural fundraising dinner. The proceed for the dinner will be donated to supporting victims of the recent devastating floods in Pakistan.“The aim of the evening in addition to raising funds for flood disaster is to raise awareness of the launch of the British Pakistan Foundation and to celebrate the valuable contribution British Pakistanis make to Britain”, said the Foundation spokesperson Ahlya Fateh.
Founded and led by the British Pakistani Community and Friends of Pakistan at a critical moment in Pakistan’s history, the British Pakistan Foundation (BPF) is dedicated to improving the socio-economic condition of the people of Pakistan.
“Our unique approach aims to encourage and support philanthropy amongst the British Pakistani Diaspora and to collectively use our intellectual and financial capital to improve and change Pakistan,” she added.
The event is being attended by leading British and Pakistanis from the field of sport, business, music, film , politics and entertainment.
She quoted from a World Bank report which said the British Pakistani community can be a potent force for development for Pakistan through remittances and philanthropy, as well as through the promotion of trade, investments, knowledge and technology transfers.
In October 2009, the State Bank of Pakistan revealed that a surge in remittances from the expatriate Pakistani community played an important role in stabilising the Pakistani economy. A total of 6 billion pounds in remittances from Pakistanis living abroad is expected for the current year and this number is expected to grow each year.
Ms.Fateh said BPF is a not for profit organisation dedicated to creating a significant and sustainable impact on the socio-economic development of Pakistan by using entrepreneurial approaches to solve poverty related problems that affect over 170 million people.
BPF seeks to prove that the effective use of philanthropic capital, combined with a high level of business acumen and intellectual capability can ensure that great ideas have the opportunity to develop and grow to serve vast numbers of the poor.
According to her BPF will serve as a secure and trusted channel that will complement and grow current philanthropic efforts in Pakistan with new sources of public and private support for well run projects within the health and education sectors.
“We will seek to act as a focal organization for the British Pakistani community and the Friends of Pakistan, helping them to identify and support well run and effective projects that are changing Pakistan’s future.”
Explaining the BPF aims, she said these include building a professional organization that is secular, transparent, credible, and accountable for all of its activities, to help develop and instil a strong British identity amongst Britain’s Pakistani community and to encourage British Pakistanis to support the adoption and promotion of a more positive image of Pakistan within the UK and internationally, to develop a secure and transparent channel for funding programs to improve donor trust through the establishment of an effective mechanism for evaluation, monitoring and reporting of charitable projects which meet international donor and foundation expectations.
To establish partnerships with the key Pakistani influencers and Friends of Pakistan and other development organizations in order to increase awareness of Pakistan’s development issues, identify and promote powerful solutions and work with governments to advocate more effective and accountable aid provision systems.
Complement existing British Pakistani philanthropy by identifying greater foundation and corporate funding to facilitate expansion of existing projects and to provide the BPF charter mark to Pakistan related charitable organizations who pass our strict due diligence certification procedures.
And to identify the leading sector and development experts within Britain and Pakistan who can collectively work together to share best practice and pool their intellectual capital for the greater benefit of Pakistan.
Courtesy www.app.com.pk