By Kamran Hashim/Rafiq Vayani
DUBAI/KARACHI: This 7th Edition of LADIESFUND® Sustainability Lunch, was hosted by LADIESFUND® Pakistan in collaboration with Dawood Global Foundation (DGF) at Acton House Gardens, British Deputy High Commission, Karachi on Saturday 14th January 2023.
This year’s 7th LADIESFUND® Sustainability Lunch’ aims to bridge the gap between the corporate world and the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (UNSGD) as Pakistan inches further into the 2020’s.
The 17 goals outline affect economic, environmental and social aspects of the world around us and provide individuals and companies across the globe with the blueprint to build sustainable practices that improves life for all. The 17 United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) are as follows: 1) No Poverty, 2) Zero Hunger, 3) Good health & Well-being, 4) Quality Education, 5) Gender Equality, 6) Clean water & Sanitation, 7) Affordable & Clean Energy, 8) Decent Work & Economic Growth, 9) Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure, 10) Reducing Inequalities, 11) Sustainable Cities & Communities, 12) Responsible Consumption & Production, 13) Climate Change, 14) Life below water, 15) Life on land, 16) Peace & Justice Strong Institutions and 17) Partnerships to achieve the goal purpose
Xenab Ansari, SDG Trainer for LADIESFUND®, during her keynote speech spoke in details on “How to Make Businesses Sustainable in alignment with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs)”.
She focused on how these SDGs affect Pakistan’s communities, environment and industries, with examples of great practices by the corporate sector throughout the history of Pakistan. All of the goals are interconnected with each other, and where communities will come together under one SDG, they will find themselves benefiting the world at large in other SDGs as well.
Xenab Ansari, during her speech said; “in a difficult world where the economy is hanging by a single thread, the UNSDGs provide a way out, a way to rectify the wrongs that have accumulated over many years, into a brighter future for tomorrow”.
She said; “the benefits of the SDGs are numerous, and there are several ways companies can add them as part of their overall business strategy, without dealing with the burden of incredibly heavy costs”.
Xenab also discussed; “No-Poverty, Zero-Hunger, Quality-Education, Gender-Equality, access to Clean water & sanitation and Climate-Change as fundamental SDGs to focus and work on”.
On her concluding note Xenab Ansari said; “with more and more companies using the Sustainable Development Goals as a foundation upon which they spread positive impact into the world, Pakistan as a whole will have a silver lining to look up to”.
Xenab Ansari is a keynote speaker and corporate trainer specializing in Diversity, Inclusion and Equity. She has also founded ‘Empower Yourself’, a platform that researches and develops training resources on 6 forms of self-defense, which are 1) physical, 2) psychological, 3) verbal, 4) legal, 5) financial and 6) digital. Since 2017, Xenab has trained various top tier and middle tier companies; she also is a pledge of the SGD-5 Secretariat at the National Assembly and has delivered speeches at conferences for international labor organizations, Rotary International and various international and local Non-Government-Organizations (NGOs).
LADIESFUND® was established in 2007 as an initiative to provide financial security to women and to promote and train women entrepreneurs. It aims to integrate the entrepreneurial needs based on the economic and social aspects of the local communities, with respect to greater women’s participation in the workforce.
