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PTCL Group, in partnership with the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), announced the expansion of its flagship women empowerment program, Ba-Ikhtiar, during GITEX Global 2025 in Dubai. The initiative, which began as a pilot in Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, will now extend to 23 cities across Pakistan, particularly flood-affected areas.
Originally launched to support 100 women entrepreneurs, the program will now target over 2,300 underprivileged women, equipping them with digital literacy, financial management, and entrepreneurial training. The goal is to enable participants to enhance their livelihoods and achieve upward social mobility.
The Ba-Ikhtiar initiative combines digital skills and practical trade training, such as stitching, pottery, handicrafts, food preservation, and organic cosmetics, with financial literacy and entrepreneurial coaching. By linking participants to PTCL’s connectivity infrastructure and PPAF’s grassroots outreach, the program aims to turn skills into sustainable income opportunities.
Women’s economic participation in Pakistan remains limited, particularly in vulnerable and disaster-affected communities. Programs like Ba-Ikhtiar attempt to bridge that gap by combining technology access with local capacity building.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Hatem Bamatraf, President and Group CEO of PTCL & Ufone 4G, said the initiative reflects efforts to apply digital expertise to social development:
Ba-Ikhtiar stands out as a flagship program that sets a new benchmark in sustainable social empowerment, and we are proud to extend this opportunity to more talented women across Pakistan.
Talking exclusively to TechJuice, Bamatraf said the following about the Telenor-Ufone merger:
We’re bringing together the best of both companies, including diverse cultures, expertise, and skills that will be entirely focused on our customers. This isn’t about increasing scale for scale’s sake; it’s about delivering better coverage, better quality, and better value. We’ll communicate openly at every step because trust is earned through transparency.
Nadir Gul Barech, CEO of PPAF, emphasized the milestone in terms of long-term community impact:
This expansion marks a significant milestone in our journey to empower women from vulnerable communities. By combining social development with digital innovation, we can create real pathways for women to achieve economic self-reliance.
Meanwhile, ConnectHear also took to GITEX, supported by Ufone, that aims to provide connectivity solutions and accessible communication services to the hard-of-hearing. At GITEX, many more initiatives showcased technologies and models that strive to strengthen digital infrastructure.
