BUILDING HUMAN CAPITAL: CHALLENGES IN PROVISIONING FOR EDUCATION AND HEALTH EQUITY
My personal journey in addressing deep rooted socio-economic structural issues that marginalize and exclude large sections of the population traverses 60 years of personal, professional and public life. My earliest memories are of the nursery and kindergarten classes started by my mother Nasra Wazir Ali in our home in Karachi in 1949, just 2 years after the creation of Pakistan
Within a few weeks there were more than 100 children enrolled, most of the house was rapidly converted into classes and my mother had named the school as Frobel School after the German educationist Friedrich Frobel (1782-1852).
In 1996, the school was renamed Nasra Schools. Today, there are five purpose- built campuses across Karachi, providing education to more than 9,000 students, from mid- to low- income families. The schools are vibrant testimony to the earnest desire of the parents, most of whom are uneducated, to educate their sons and daughters.
During my political journey of 37 years, as a Member of Parliament and as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, I initiated the Polio Eradication Program and the doorstep-based lady Health Workers and Community Midwives Programs. These two cadres of 250,000 women are the backbone of Pakistan’s primary healthcare system.
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY:
Shahnaz Wazir Ali Sitara-e-Imtiaz, has an illustrious career spanning 40 years as an educator and social sector development policy specialist. She has been elected twice to the National Assembly of Pakistan and served twice as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Sectors. She is also a well-known women’s rights activist. Since 1965, she has served as a Trustee of the Education Trust Nasra School, Karachi.
Ms. Wazir Ali has been deeply involved with polio eradication; family planning; population and education sector reform; and social protection. She served as Senior Education Specialist at the World Bank and held the position of Minister of State for Education for the Government of Pakistan. She has served on the boards of a number of prestigious national and international organizations, trusts, advisory councils and educational boards. Since 2013, she has served as the President of SZABIST University, which has five campuses in Pakistan and one in Dubai, UAE.
Ms. Wazir Ali holds a master's degree in Education from the University of Arkansas and a certificate in Education Administration from Trenton College (New Jersey). She earned a diploma in Principal’s Certification from Harvard University and a bachelor's degree in Mass Communication from the American University. .