Agri scientists and educationists have called for motivating the female graduates to avail the overseas higher education opportunities, narrowing down the gender gap in education and other fields and make the people aware about women rights in order to overcome gender based violence incidences.
Speakers stated this at a workshop organised under Gender Sensitisation and Women Empowerment in Agriculture Sector Project of Gender Equity Programme of Aurat Foundation and USAID at university’s new Senate Hall. The workshop was arranged by Department of Rural Sociology, and Institute of Home Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad.
Addressing on the occasion, UAF Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan called for creating more educational opportunities for rural girls to empower them by creating awareness about their rights in the society.
He said that women empowerment was prerequisite to achieve sustainable development and prosperity. He said we cannot make the development without involving the women in socio-economic activities and bringing them into mainstream.He showed his concerns that the ratio of the girls in the postgraduate degree programmes has decreased. He said women should be encouraged to come in the higher studies and play their active role in the development of the county. He said that UAF was making efforts to promote the education in women.
Dean Faculty of Social Sciences, Professor Dr Iqbal Zafar said that during the last 30 years, we witnessed an enormous change in the societal behaviour as today more than 40 percent girls are enrolled in universities and pursuing their goals with the help of their families. He said rural women are playing a pivotal role in the development of agricultural but their role remained unrecognised.
Dean Faculty of Agriculture, Professor Dr Amjad Aulak said that HEC as like DAD, USAID, Fulbright Scholarships, should evolve an overseas PhD policy that allows the whole family to move abroad that would help the female scholars to pursue higher education with full confidence and vigour.
He stressed upon the need to enhance role of government, people and other stakeholders to address the women issue. He said that we have to give the confidence and self reliance to the women to compete with the world.
Institute of Rural Home Economics Chairperson, Dr Farah Riaz said in the modern world, the women are standing with shoulder to shoulder to men in the socio-economic activities.
Chairman Sociology, Professor Dr Ashfaq Maann said that a large number of women are working in the agricultural field. He said that women must be aware to fight the discrimination and violence.
