To celebrate International Women’s Day (8th March), NIC Karachi did something a little different. The NIC Karachi team led by Zahra Abdus Samad with help from a few of the startups created a ‘Khud Mukhtar’ mural to honor all the great women entrepreneurs of the world.
The word ‘Khud Mukhtar’ translates to independent, which in many ways is the perfect way to describe an entrepreneur and women entrepreneurs even more so. Often they are required to work harder than their male counterparts in what is a male-dominated society, women entrepreneurs play a vital role within the startup ecosystem through their courage, creativity, and commitment.
The mural painting was also a way to promote ‘pleasure activism’, a form of activism through which one derives joy and at the same time supports a social cause. The activity also provided the participants an opportunity to express themselves creatively and have fun.
While the startup ecosystem continues to become more inclusive for women, there still needs to work done for the cause. One such initiative that was undertaken by NIC Karachi in collaboration with the Asia Foundation was the BuiltByHer Hackathon that took place towards 2020. The competition aimed to encourage young female tech-enthusiasts and aspiring changemakers to create tech-based solutions to tackle developmental challenges facing local communities.