Nafisa Shah

Nafisa Shah
Vice-President Commonwealth Parliamentary Association former chair, National Commission of Human Development of Pakistan
Constituency Khairpur Mirs
Personal details
Born 20 January 1968
Sukkur Sindh Pakistan
Citizenship Pakistani
Political party Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)
Parents Qaim Ali Shah
Residence Jilani House, Khairpur Mirs

Nafisa Shah PhD (Urdu: نفيسہ شاہ‎) is a Pakistani politician and social anthropologist who serves as a Member of National Assembly of Pakistan since 2008 and the vice-president of Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. Shah also served as the Mayor of Khairpur District.[1][2]

Born in Sukkur to a Sindhi family. Her father Qaim Ali Shah went to the head the provincial government as an influential member of the center-right Pakistan Peoples Party. Shah was raised in Karachi and went on to study cultural anthropology at the Wolfson College, Oxford as a Chevening Scholar, she later received her DPhil in 2011 on her research on honour killing's in Pakistan.[3][4]

Shah started her political career in 2001 when she contested for mayoral election for the Khairpur District in Sindh, which she won and remained a mayor until 2007. In February 2008, she was elected to the Pakistan's National Assembly as a backbencher of the Peoples Party. She became the chairperson of the National Commission for Human Development and remained until 2013.[5] She was re-elected to the National Assembly in 2013, and joined the opposition bench's. [6][7]

Education and personal life

Nafisa Shah was born on 20 January 1968 in Sukkur to Husn Afroze Brohi Shah and Syed Qaim Ali Shah Jilani.

She completed her O-Levels at St. Joseph's Convent School and A-Levels at Karachi Grammar School. Upon finishing her undergraduate studies, Shah worked with Newsline and the Sustainable Development Policy Institute

Her reporting on environmental problems, development and gender issues won her acclaim at home and abroad. In 1993, Shah received All-Pakistan Newspaper Society's Best Article of the Year award[8] and was included on United Nations' Global Roll of Honour.[9]

In recognition of her groundbreaking research work, Nafisa Shah was admitted as a Chevening Scholar to the Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Oxford.[10] After completing her Masters in Social and Cultural Anthropology, Shah enrolled in a doctoral program in Anthropology.[11]

Upon returning to Pakistan in 2000 for her field research on Karo Kari (honour killings) in upper Sindh, Shah was drawn into active politics. She contested Khairpur's local elections and won.[12] From then on, she has worked as a committed public representative.[13]

After spending 10 years conducting research, Shah completed her doctoral thesis on "Honour Violence, Law and Power: A Case Study of Karo Kari in Upper Sindh" at the University of Oxford in 2010. According to news sources, the examiners praised the quality of her PhD thesis and "said that the argument and the data mustered to support the theses were original, persuasive and lucidly and coherently presented[14]” Her book on the topic is under publication.

Public life

Nafisa Shah spent her childhood and teenage years actively participating in her father's election campaigns along with her siblings. Later, she volunteered with former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, conducting research for speeches and dealing with policy matters.

Victory during the 2001 local elections for Khairpur's Nazim (mayor-ship) enabled Shah to implement her vision for inclusive, community supported development. By launching a successful hepatitis vaccination drive and building several schools, hospitals, museums and recreation centres, Shah set the benchmark high for her contemporaries and successors.

Later, she was appointed the chair of Pakistan’s National Commission for Human Development (NCHD). Discharging her responsibilities, Shah has built schools, adult literacy centres, vocational training institutes and relief camps for people displaced by floods and internal warfare. Her organisation functions as a vital bridge between public and private sectors, enabling Pakistan achieve Millennium Development Goals.[15]

For her public work, decorations and awards have followed by the dozen. Most notably, she was identified as a Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum in 2005[16] and included in Newsweek Pakistan’s “100 Women Who Shake Pakistan” in 2011.[17]

Notable awards

Guest lectures

Publications

References

  1. ↑ "Nafisa Shah".
  2. ↑ "Women treated as 'second-rate' parliamentarians, says Dr Nafisa - The Express Tribune". 2016-03-21. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  3. ↑ "Profiles: International Conference on Civil-Military Relations". www.pildat.org. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  4. ↑ "newbooks.asia". newbooks.asia. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  5. ↑ Administrator. "Ex-Chairperson's Message on International Women's Day 2013". nchd.org.pk. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  6. ↑ "Nafisa Shah: Breaching `honour` | ePaper | DAWN.COM". epaper.dawn.com. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  7. ↑ Member of National Assembly http://cybervision.com.pk/na/en/profile.php?uid=336
  8. ↑ Newsline Awards http://www.newslinemagazine.com/about-2/2/
  9. ↑ UN Global Roll of Honour http://www.global500.org/ViewLaureate.asp?ID=183
  10. ↑ Nafisa Shah at Oxford University http://www.oupaksoc.org/alumni.html
  11. ↑ Nafisa Shah's Oxford University Lecture http://www.ox.ac.uk/gazette/2009-10/weekly/040310/lecs.htm
  12. ↑ Nafisa Shah, Nazim of Khairpur http://sachet.org.pk/home/g_for_gender/elected_women.asp
  13. ↑ Qudsia Kadri Interviews Nafisa Shah http://www.dailyfpost.com/women/wom-29/womenachiver29.htm
  14. ↑ Nafisa Shah gets PhD from Oxford http://www.dawn.com/2011/04/04/nafisa-shah-gets-phd-from-oxford.html
  15. ↑ National Commission for Human Development http://www.nchd.org.pk/ws/
  16. ↑ Young Global Leader, World Economic Forum https://members.weforum.org/pdf/YGL/list05.pdf
  17. ↑ Newsweek Pakistan's"100 Women Who Shake Pakistan" http://www.newsweekpakistan.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=270&Itemid=53
  18. ↑ Aurat Foundation Lecture http://www.af.org.pk/gep/naf.html
  19. ↑ Chief guest at FWB http://www.fwbl.com.pk/?p=1073
  20. ↑ Chief Guest at Inter-University debate http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011%5C04%5C08%5Cstory_8-4-2011_pg11_9
  21. ↑ Nafisa Shah at NUST http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Islamabad/31-Jan-2011/Only-29pc-women-are-literate
  22. ↑ Nafisa Shah at SALU http://tribune.com.pk/story/86798/unesco-setting-up-centre-of-excellence-at-salu/
  23. ↑ http://www.aku.edu/university/Graduation2010/pak-diploma-speeches-nafisashah.shtml
  24. ↑ Prime Minister's Contempt Case, Express Tribune http://tribune.com.pk/story/373633/the-prime-ministers-contempt-case/
  25. ↑ Gilani's Dismissal – http://tribune.com.pk/story/402003/gilanis-dismissal--of-law-and-politics/
  26. ↑ Shah, Nafisa on Women's Policing http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=162904&Cat=9&dt=16 February 2009
  27. ↑ Politics of Being Asif Zardari (http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=134105&Cat=9&dt=9 June 2008)
  28. ↑ Tribute to Benazir Bhutto http://benazir.bhutto.org/Remembrance/articles-19.htm
  29. ↑ Making Crime, Custom and Culture http://www.boell-pakistan.org/downloads/scratching_the_surface_commentary.pdf#page=145
  30. ↑ Faislo: Informal Settlement System and Crimes Against Women http://hbv-awareness.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/REPORT-BY-SHIRKAT-GAH-The-Dark-Side-of-Honour-Women-Victims-in-Pakistan.pdf
  31. ↑ Media and Environment Seminar https://dr.ntu.edu.sg/handle/10220/2977
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