ISLAMABAD: Importance of Social Media cannot be overemphasized, as it is the harbinger of social change and has easy and vast outreach among the masses.
President Dr. Arif Alvi said this, while chairing a meeting on Social Media with the Ministry of Information & broadcasting. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan was also present in the meeting.
Emphasizing the important role of social media in Nation’s building, President said that ministry of information has to broaden its mandate to counter anti-state propaganda and project the soft image of the country on cyber space. He called upon ministry’s social media team to become more active and innovative towards using digital graphics techniques and content development to influence the world audience.
SAPM Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan apprised the President that government is well aware of the importance of social media and every effort was being made to effectively use this platform to promote the progressive and democratic image of Pakistan across the world. She further informed the President that like print and electronic media, social media advertisement is also under consideration in the new advertisement policy.
Earlier, the Secretary Information Shafqat Jalil apprised the President regarding the structural contours of social media setup in the Ministry. He also briefed the President on the initiatives taken by social media team of the Ministry to counter anti-state propaganda and promote soft image of the country in an effective and timely manner.
Meanwhile, President Arif Alvi has said that the state is fully alive to its responsibility to provide all possible facilities to the visually impaired people.
Talking to a delegation of Pakistan Association of the Blind in Islamabad on Thursday, the President underlined the need for having correct database of disabled people so that proper policies could be formulated for their betterment.
The President appreciated the efforts of Pakistan Association of the Blind in the field of education, training and rehabilitation of visually impaired persons for improving their standard of living. He assured them every possible support of their future endeavors besides ensuring proper implementation of their quota. He called upon the PAB to establish close coordination with Baitul Maal.
Pakistan Association of the Blind (PAB), founded by Late Dr. Fatima Shah in 1960 and registered under the volunteer Social Welfare Agency Ordinance, aims at “Education, Training and Rehabilitation of Visually Impaired Persons with the prime objective to make the blind person able, self-relying, respectable and productive member of the society by creating a sense of equal participation among them in all aspects of life”.
It is the only registered organization of its kind in Pakistan, having its Federal Zone in Islamabad,4 Provincial Branches in Provincial Capitals, and 47 District Branches throughout the country. Additionally, PAB is doing its utmost for accommodation of considerable number of
blind in Government Departments and Private Organizations against reserved quota of Disabled Persons.
The meeting was attended by Mr. Ghulam Dastagir, President, PAB and Qari Saad Noor, General Secretary, PAB. – NNI