The Challenge Initiative (TCI) formally launched its new Pakistan hub on March 16, 2022, in Islamabad, Pakistan. Pakistan’s honorable President Dr.  Arif Alvi participated in the high-level launch, where he said it was the responsibility of media and Ulema (Muslim scholars trained in Islam and Islamic law) to promote family planning in the country because comprehensive and continuous awareness is necessary for not only a mother and child’s health but also for national development.

TCI Pakistan is TCI’s sixth hub with Greenstar Social Marketing serving as the regional hub partner. To help educate and destigmatize family planning, the president urged the media to ensure frequent messaging in their content, such as dramas and morning shows. Similarly, he said the Ulema should use their pulpit for similar messaging as they had done during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Greenstar CEO Syed Azizur Rab told the gathering that out of 10 million pregnancies a year in Pakistan, around four million were unwanted. TCI’s Project Director, Kojo Lokko, and its Deputy Project Director, Maheen Malik, also attended the launch. 

TCI will begin it work in Pakistan by supporting provincial governments in large urban cities with underserved communities across Punjab, Sindh and Islamabad Capital Territory with high-impact interventions designed to improve access to modern contraception and family planning services and information.

See full news story

See Photo Gallery of the launch event below