Amjad Saqib
Dr. Amjad Saqib is the founder of Akhuwat, the world’s largest Islamic Micro-Finance Institution."Poverty is not just about a lack of resources; it’s about deprivation – of social network, justice and morality. But poverty, in its worst form, is of hopelessness" – Dr. Amjad Saqib
Early Life[edit]
Hailing from Faisalabad (Pakistan), Dr. Amjad Saqib was born in February 1957. His father, a government servant, embedded the value of hard work and integrity in him; on the other hand, he was nurtured with the values of empathy, love and compassion by his mother. A school teacher by profession, she instilled a strong sense of discipline and importance of education in him from a young age.
The desire to be the best and the urge to put in extraordinary effort to achieve his goals defined him from early years – it reflected in his academic life as well; be it seeking motivation from his elder brother, Afzal Javed[1], to do well in matriculation exams, securing among the top positons in FSc, getting admission to the prestigious Government College Lahore and King Edward Medical College for a degree in Medicine or bagging the highest position in the Civil Services Examination.
Civil Service Career[edit]
He recalls obtaining a medical degree to please his parents as it was their dream but his passion lied somewhere else. In pursuit of his dream, after graduating from medical school, Dr. Saqib joined the Civil Services of Pakistan in 1985 as part of the distinguished District Management Group. His second stint during the career was as Assistant Commissioner Chiniot, a small town near Lahore. This was among destiny’s many acts in bringing him closer to his purpose – Social Entrepreneurship and Poverty Alleviation.
It is exactly this place which exposed the ugliest face of poverty for him and yet inspired him to eventually write his seventh book, Kamyab Log.[2]
His time in the U.S as a Hubert. H Humphrey Fellow, for Master in International Development and Public Administration at the American University[3][4], Washington DC, equipped him with a worldview on leadership that he would later utilize in his entrepreneurial efforts for poverty alleviation. Thomas Jefferson and Martin Luther King greatly inspired Dr. Saqib, leaving a profound impression. In Akhuwat Ka Safar[5], his best-seller travelogue, he speaks about how their respective efforts and proclamation for a society with equal rights for all inspired him.
Akhuwat[edit]
While serving at high-level bureaucratic positions, he was appointed as the General Manager Punjab Rural Support Program in 1998. It is during this time period that Dr. Saqib’s interaction with his mentor, Mr. Shoaib Sultan Khan[6] ushered and his understanding of community lead participatory development escalated. He realized that to work with people, one truly learns not from books but from people themselves. Therefore, in his quest for a more impactful life, Dr. Saqib bid farewell to an alluring career as a Civil Servant while at the highest echelons of service.
This is where he fell in love with micro-finance as a strategy for poverty alleviation but his interaction with the extremely vulnerable groups made him realize that the interest on micro-credit is exorbitant. He finds the financial system where a rich person has access to a loan at 10%-12% and a poor man has to pay a rate as high as 30-40% cruel. For the former, his wealth only increases; in contrast, the latter is only able to meet basic necessities of life.
It led Dr. Saqib to the conclusion that poverty alleviation requires a cross-cutting, integrated developmental approach, which addresses multiple dimensions of poverty. Micro-finance is one of the tools to be used. He often wondered about a system where the fruits of a poor man’s hard work are harvested by him alone, a poverty free society built on the principles of compassion and equity. In this quest, he conceived the idea of Akhuwat and shared with his close friends in 2001. Overwhelmed by the idea, they offered their support. Dr. Saqib, on account of his determination and struggle spread over 18 years, was able to help over 3.1 million families with a total amount of USD 572 Million through Akhuwat. After development of an interest-free micro-finance system, a fee free institution- university was his next dream that was fulfilled on 14th August 2018. This, incidentally, is the same day when Pakistan dream came into being.
Akhuwat Programs[edit]
- Microfinance[7]
- KSP[8]
- Clothes Bank[9]
- Parwaaz
- RSP
- Medical/Health[10]
- Education (schools + colleges)[11][12]
- Akhuwat University[13]
- Facilitation & Support
- Internships & Fellowships[14]
- Public Housing[15]
- APDC
Accolades & Honors[edit]
Because of his achievements in restoring human dignity to Pakistan’s most vulnerable communities including women, minorities and transgender through financial inclusion, education, health care, and sharing food and clothes, Dr. Saqib has received worldwide recognition.
| Award Titles | Awarded By | Year | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Khushal Khan Khattak Literary[16] | Govt. of the Punjab | 1993 | |
| Sitara-e-Imtiaz[17] | Govt. of the Punjab, Salman Taseer | 2010 | |
| Nazriya-I-Pakistan Gold Medal | PM, Mr. Yousaf Raza Gilani | 2010 | |
| I Am The Change[18][19] | Engro IATC | 2013 | |
| Lifetime Achievement[20] | Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank & Thomson Reuters | 2014 | |
| Honorary Citizenship (of Louisville)[21] | Mayor, Greg E. Fischer | 2014 | |
| Human Rights Society of Pakistan (HRSP)[22] | 35th Human Rights Award | 2015 | |
| PACE Awards | Pakistani American Community | 2017 | |
| Islamic Finance Excellence[23] | Comsats University | 2018 | |
| Naimat Ullah Khan Lifetime Achievement Award | - | 2018 | |
| Commonwealth’s 31st Point of Light Award[24][25][26] | Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth | 2018 | |
| Lifetime Achievement - Islamic Economics Application Award[27] | IGIAD's President Ayhan Karahan | 2018 | |
| Best Performance Award (Social Entrepreneur)[28] | CM Shehbaz Sharif | 2018 |
including the 31st Points of Light Award by Queen Elizabeth II. The President of Pakistan honored him with Sitara-e-Imtiaz, one of the highest civil awards. He is also the recipient of Islamic Economic Award 2018 by IKAM, Life Time Achievement Award from Reuters and Abu Dhabi National Bank, and the Life Time Achievement Award by the Human Rights Society of Pakistan besides many more.
Writing & Literature[edit]
| Book Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Aik Yaadgaar Mushaira | 2014 |
| Akhuwat Ka Safar | 2014 |
| Ghurbat Aur Microcredit | 2013 |
| Gotam Ke Dais Main | 2014 |
| Sher-e-Lab-e-Darya | 2015 |
| Kamyab Loag | 2016 |
| Dasht-e-Zulmat Main Aik Diya | 2014 |
| Devolution and Governance | 2008 |
Spouse & Children[edit]
He is married to Farrukh Amjad, who he believes to be a silent yet the strongest supporter of his mission, with two children whom he loves most – Junaid Farid and Farazeen Amjad Shahid.
References[edit]
This article "Amjad Saqib" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Amjad Saqib. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
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This page exists already on Wikipedia. |
- ↑ "Off The Record". www.pulsepakistan.com. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ Saqib, Amjad. Kamyab Log. Search this book on
- ↑ University, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs at Georgetown. "Muhammad Amjad Saqib". berkleycenter.georgetown.edu. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Humphrey Fellowship Program". American University Washington College of Law. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ Saqib, Amjad. Akhuwat Ka Safar. Search this book on
- ↑ "Shoaib Sultan Khan", Wikipedia, 2019-03-12, retrieved 2019-03-14
- ↑ "Akhuwat Islamic Microfinance". Akhuwat.
- ↑ "Khuwajasira Support Program". Akhuwat.
- ↑ "Clothes Bank". Akhuwat.
- ↑ "Health Clinic". Akhuwat.
- ↑ "Homepage". Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Education – Akhuwat". Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Akhuwat University". Akhuwat.
- ↑ "Internship – Akhuwat". Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "PM Imran Khan presents govt's 100-day performance". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Dr. M. Amjad Saqib". TABA Foundation. 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Pride of Performance, Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Sitara-e-Imtiaz awards conferred". Business Recorder. 2010-03-24. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Akhuwat - Projects | I Am The Change". Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Impacting Real Change ― Engro honors the winners of I am the Change digital competition | Engro Corporation". www.engro.com. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Lifetime achievement award to Dr Amjad". The Nation. 2014-11-09. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Lifetime Achievement Award To Dr Saqib Presented By Governor Punjab, Malik Muhammad Rafique Rajwana – Akhuwat". Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Human Rights Society of Pakistan". hrspakistan.org. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Center of Islamic Finance, CUI Lahore". lahore.comsats.edu.pk. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Pakistan - Commonwealth Point of Light". Points of Light - Prime Minister's Office 10 Downing Street.
- ↑ "Queen recognises Pakistani volunteer with Commonwealth Points of Light award". Daily Times. 2018-03-28. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Her Majesty The Queen recognises Pakistani volunteer with Commonwealth Points of Light award". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
- ↑ "Meet the 2018 Islamic Economy Award Winners". Islamic Economy Award - Dubai Chamber.
- ↑ "World-changers: meet the Social Entrepreneurs of the Year 2018". World Economic Forum.
- ↑ "Amjadsaqib". www.amjadsaqib.com. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
