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KARACHI, Oct 09 (APP):Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Thursday said that his ambition is clear: a Sindh where every enterprising woman and man can access finance, build livelihoods, and contribute to shared prosperity.”
CM Shah showcased government’s remarkable achievements in poverty reduction and financial inclusion, unveiling a forward-looking strategy to uplift marginalized communities – most notably women, youth, and rural families. He said this while speaking at the closing ceremony session of the 9th Annual Micro-finance Conference 2025, organized by Pakistan Microfinance Network here at a local hotel.
Sindh was among the first provinces in Pakistan to adopt a comprehensive Poverty Reduction Strategy, which places financial inclusion at its core.
Highlighting the expansion of programmes like the People’s Poverty Reduction Program (PPRP), authorities pointed out how coverage has grown from just two districts to 24, and millions of rural households have been brought together into community groups under both the PPRP and the SUCCESS initiative. Most impressively, more than 170,000 women have been empowered with community loans to start their own businesses, transforming the landscape of rural Sindh.
Shah said that the government’s approach has reached beyond just microcredit. By combining skills training, social mobilisation, climate-resilient housing, improvements to water supply and essential infrastructure, rural road networks, and enhanced connections to markets for local artisans—both through exhibitions and digital tools-Sindh is reshaping rural life from the ground up.
Crucially, climate resilience is now a mainstay of poverty alleviation programmes, the CM said and added that, driven by the need to recover from floods and extreme weather events, Sindh’s development model has integrated post-flood enterprise recovery, disaster preparation, and climate-resilient housing. This, officials say, is essential for ensuring that communities not only survive but also thrive long term.
The province’s progress owes much to global collaboration. International partners-the European Union, with its funding of the SUCCESS and PAIDAR programmes, UNIDO as a technical ally in blended finance and enterprise support, the Pakistan Micro-finance Network, as well as multiple micro-finance banks and fin-tech firms-have all played vital roles in driving these successes, offering policy support, sector reforms, and enabling new channels like nano-lending and mobile wallets, Murad Shah said.
The government also commended the ADB Women Inclusive Finance Facility for its contribution to closing the gender gap in access to finance. Looking ahead, the Sindh government laid out an ambitious roadmap for inclusive finance, Shah added. He said that the key elements include launching a guarantee-based blended finance facility in partnership with the European Union and UNIDO-PAIDAR, aiming to unlock affordable credit for women, youth, minorities, and micro-enterprises.
As the conference concluded, officials called on banks, micro-finance institutions, donors, fin-tech companies, and regulators to unite and use the findings of the “Sindh’s Financial Landscape” study to guide evidence-based policy and create innovative new products.