22 July 2004	Thursday	04 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425

KARACHI, July 21: The Sindh minister for Population Welfare and Women Development, Dr Saeeda Malik, has directed the Bait-ul-Maal, Pakistan to provide financial assistance to needy and deserving women.

Talking to some higher officials of the bait-ul-maal at her office on Wednesday, she asked them to launch a programme for getting women prisoners, unable to arrange for bail money or fine money, released from jails.

Dr Saeeda also said that women be given loans on easy instalments for starting their own businesses. The deputy managing director, Bait-ul-Maal, Pakistan, Brig Younus, on the occasion, told the provincial minister that 21 national centres for children and three vocational training schools were functioning in Sindh and run by his department.

In addition, four new vocational schools would be opened in Hyderabad, Ghotki, Nawabshah and Larkana, where children would be given vocational training, he added. He further said the bait-ul-maal was running a training centre at Hawkesbay, Karachi, where women were imparted training of preparing handicrafts. - PPI