KARACHI: Pakistan’s only private power utility company and the sole electricity provider to the city of Karachi, K-Electric (KE) held its inaugural KHI Awards on April 3, honouring social service organisations who are working in the city.
As many as 34 winners received awards in 13 different categories at a ceremony with strict observance of Covid-19 SOPs.
The shortlisted organisations were chosen from various categories including education, public health, culture and heritage, financial inclusion, sports and women empowerment- who along with the awards, took home an electrical rebate ranging from Rs250,000 to Rs5 million as a token of appreciation for their immense work.
Sindh Governor Imran Ismail sent a video message lauding the winners and commending KE for acknowledging their efforts. “The participants and winners of these awards are an integral part of the state, as they support the government in its efforts to help the people of the city across a number of different fields including education, public health, and sustainability. I appreciate KE’s step to recognise the efforts of these NGOs and I am sure that it will be a catalyst towards bigger plans. The process was conducted with utmost transparency and impartiality, and all organisations were evaluated on their performance alone”.
Speaking about the inaugural edition and KE’s association with the city, KE CEO Moonis Alvi said, ” KE’s relationship with Karachi extends over 107 years, and our work is embedded into the very fabric of this great city. It is heartening that so many competent and passionate organisations are working at the forefront to uplift the city.”
He added that these awards are KE’s humble effort to acknowledge their dedication and extend support for ongoing efforts. “KE is also grateful to the jury members who volunteered their time and expertise, as well as our audit partners, who ensured credibility and transparency in the evaluation process”.
Each of the winners was selected following a detailed review process which shortlisted 73 organisations from around 140 entries that had been received. Each nominee was largely judged on the efficacy of their project and the way it was executed during the agreed time and within the allocated budgets. This process also included selecting organisations that demonstrated the adoption of best practices with regards to urban innovation and the use of technology and mobile solutions.
“We had an overwhelming number of entries to choose from for our first edition. The winners have been instrumental in making a tremendous impact on the city, and their total asset base stands at over Rs54 billion, which is the welfare investment these organizations are making to drive progress in Pakistan and its largest metropolitan city. KE’s decision to honour these organizations and empower them on their journey is commendable,” Jury Chair, Saad Amanullah Khan, who is also the founder of #IAMKARACHI, said while speaking about the entire selection process.
The nomination processes were audited by EY Ford Rhodes Chartered Accountants, a member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited, who served as the official award auditors and monitored the end to end process of shortlisting and jury processes against the defined parameters developed by KE.
Most of the ones that ended up being shortlisted were those that excelled in the impact of their projects, on the quality of their execution and for sticking to allocated budgets and timelines. This process also put a lot of weight on the adoption of best practices in urban innovation and the use of technology and mobile solutions.
The final list of the winners includes:
1. Digital Accessibility & Financial Inclusion
doctHERs
2. Education
Idara e Taleem o Agahi – Sehrish Farooq
Orange Tree Foundation – Omer Mateen Allahwala
Institute of Business Administration, Karachi
Development in Literacy
3. Empowering Women
Kiran Foundation – Sabina Khatri
The Citizens Foundation (TCF) – Amna Khalid
Behbud Association Karachi – Saira Naqui
4. Heritage & Culture
National Academy of Performing Arts – Moonis Alvi
Idara e Taleem o Agahai
Tehzeeb Foundation of Pakistan
5. Inclusion
Marie Adelaide Leprosy Centre – Marven Lobo
Family Educational Services Foundation (FESF) – Shahzad Zaki
Hands – Shaikh Maaz
6. Livelihoods & Vocational Training
The Hunar Foundation – Air CDR Retd. Muhammad Nasiruddin SI
Who is Hussain? Foundation – Ali Abbas
Karachi Vocational Training Center – Senator Abdul Haseeb Khan
7. New Organisations (Less Than 12 Months Old)
Pakistan Legal United Society (PLUS – Legal Aid) – Altaf Khoso
Pink Pakistan Trust – Dr. Zubaida Qazi
8. Public Health
Indus Hospital and Health Network (IHHN) – Syed Mashud Rizvi
Layton Rahmatulla Benevolent Trust (LRBT) – Najmus Saqib Hameed
ChildLife Foundation – Dr Tabish Shehzad
Fatimid Foundation –  Dr Shabneez Hussain
Lady Dufferin Hospital – Dr Zaryab Setna
Bait ul Sukoon Cancer Hospital – Zainab Ebrahim
9. Safety (Road, Fire, Home, Personal)
Pakistan Life Saving Foundation (PALS Rescue) –  Ms. Sobia
Citizens Police liaison committee (CPLC) Sindh – Zubair Habib
10. Social Service
Ayesha Chundrigar Foundation
AMTF Helping Blood Disorder Programme
Roshni Research & Development Welfare Organisation – Muhammad Ali
Panah Trust (Panah Shelter Home) – Uzma Noorani
11. Sports
Karachi United Football Foundation Trust – Talib Hussain
12. Sustainability & Environment
NED University of Engineering and Technology
13. Uplifting Communities
INFAQ Foundation – Sohail Ayub
