Board of Trustees

While 33 of my 50 years working career has been abroad, I felt strongly that my success was due to the fact that I was “Made in Pakistan”. The thought that thousands of poor but brilliant students are at the risk of losing their dreams due to lack of financial resources kept bothering me. This led to the idea of PEF and its mission: Poverty Alleviation through Professional Education.

Realizing the need to transform society and bring economic stability depends largely on the quality of education and human resource development, I have always supported professional education and skill development. This has benefitted me in my life and, therefore, I want to promote it in the country. And so PEF is the right forum for all those who have a passion and the will to make a difference in this national cause.

The cause of social work and education runs in the family. My father Mr. Khalid Niaz was a well-known educationist and social figure. Helping humanity and sharing their pain has deep roots in my upbringing.

What has motivated me to accept the position is the fact that the Foundation is dedicated to the promotion of professional education in Pakistan a need that does not have many backers in this country.

Professional discipline is the most important education in the countryʼs economic growth. Pakistan needs more and more professionals for national economic development. We at PEF ensure that no student is deprived of the professional education they deserve.

Much like impact investing, the work done at PEF impacts not only the individual students that we support for their education but also their families that rise from poverty. I feel that it is incumbent on all of us to not only give back to the community but also to play whatever part we can in helping our country become educated and resultantly decrease poverty.

I cannot put into words how satisfied I feel after helping the less privileged. I believe everyone has the right to get an education. Unfortunately, the majority of people in Pakistan are deprived of this right.

I believe talent in Pakistan is abundant, but opportunities are limited. I support PEFʼs mission to bridge this gap and strengthen alumni engagement, turning todayʼs eneficiaries into tomorrowʼs enablers for a sustainable impact for PEF.

My passion for helping humanity and the underprivileged sections of society brought me to PEF. I believe Professional Education is one of the best methods to alleviate poverty in the long run.

Like sun to a plant, like wings to a bird, higher education is a pillar of society – one that every individual must have undisputed access to. The euphoria of skills development, qualification building, and portfolio strengthening must be equalized in every nook and cranny of Pakistan; whatever your socio-economic status, the right to higher education must prevail. It brings me great joy to be joining hands with PEF for a future of professional education that sees no constraints.

If you must identify the single most important investment a country should, make for its future, itʼs Education without any doubt. More specifically its higher education that changes lives, contributes to social stability, and drives long-term economic growth. Over the past 16 years, PEF has delivered on dreams for the Pakistani youth and seeing their success makes me proud to be a part of this team.

When I learned about the impactful work PEF has been doing as a life-changing lifeline for deserving and less fortunate students, I strongly felt the desire to become part of this team and contribute to this noble cause. PEF has uplifted entire families something that ideally should have been ensured by the state. We are committed to making sure that no deserving student is denied education simply because their circumstances were not as favorable as others. PEF helps ease the burden of struggle, and my focus will be to further grow PEF and strengthen its student community.