LEAD Pakistan

Read highlights of LEAD Pakistan's 2006 activities

Launched in October 1995 by the then President, LEAD Pakistan is the nation's largest network of professionals on sustainable development—around 125 members in 25 cities serving more than 100 organisations—at the policy making as well as policy implementing level—in business & industry; federal, provincial and local government departments; CBOs, NGOs & civil society organisations; and media, academia and independent think tanks.

We are a premier capacity-building institution that through its network generates and disseminates knowledge for stakeholder dialogues and for informed decision-making. We have four thematic programme areas—Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Partnerships, Education, Environmental Management Services and Governance. We carry out our mission through capacity development; policy/field research; strategic partnerships and stakeholder/policy dialogues.

Capacity Building

Capacity development includes training programmes in sustainable development and leadership skills. We have over a decade of experience designing, developing and implementing high quality, multi-sectoral training and development for international audiences. These range from facilitated workshops for groups from 10 to 200, to virtual conferences, training-of-trainers sessions, and the LEAD Fellows Programme on Leadership for Sustainable Development. Our Capacity Development Team specialises in providing training in sustainable development topics and a suite of leadership skills including: team building, system thinking, negotiation and conflict resolution, and cross-cultural communication among others.
Policy and Research:

LEAD undertakes policy and field research on a wide range of issues. We are pursuing a growing research agenda aimed at building a body of indigenous literature on development issues and enhancing the focus and responsiveness of LEAD’s curricula. Research products include occasional papers, case studies and commissioned studies for a range of clients. They deal with fields as varied as cause related marketing and effective management of natural resource.

Partnerships

Our central objective is reaching out to all key stakeholders to achieve sustainability. Our aim is forging cross-sectoral partnerships for a ‘Living Earth’ with the government, think tanks, and decision-makers in business, civil society, academia and international aid agencies to develop a sense of ownership for the development initiatives taken to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)— Education for Sustainable Development, for instance. By engaging the key stakeholders throughout the country in a participatory process that enables them to exert their influence on the planning and monitoring of mainstream development projects, LEAD aims to provide impetus to sustainable development and forward the goal of poverty alleviation.

LEAD is implementing an important education initiative by USAID-ESRA that is helping the rural communities in the two districts of Sindh—Sukkur and Khairpur—in managing their schools. The initiative DEMO (Democratized Education Management & Ownership) is building the capacity of the communities in understanding the salient dynamics of education and applying this knowledge in managing children’s education.

A committed LEAD team of 177 is working very closely with more than 3,000 School Management Committees (SMC) and imparting knowledge that enables them to undertake the school-based planning and management; monitoring & evaluation; networking; resource mobilisation, etc. SMC attract a broad-based representation from the teachers, parents, community notables, members of civil society organisations and retired government officials to act as agents of education within the community affecting its transformation as a learning community.

A community of one million that is able to rationally identify issues, articulate vision and challenges, and plan its human, institutional and financial resources for the continued improvement of educational system would be the net impact of DEMO’s successful implementation.

LEAD Pakistan in collaboration with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has initiated a pilot project—Public-Private Partnership to Develop Capacity for Small Scale Agri-Business and Processing Enterprises to encourage the livestock rearing and provide improved livelihood opportunities to the small farmers in Thatta, Sindh.

LEAD will work very closely with the farmers to learn about their needs and develop a capacity building programme accordingly that could help strengthen their capacity. The 18-month programme proposes the testing of a series of innovative approaches to developing public-private partnerships for small-scale agri-businesses, with specific reference to the production and processing of milk. It is intended that successful elements of the programme would be up-scaled and replicated later on.

Stakeholder Dialogues

To share ideas and research findings with other sectors and institutions, LEAD Pakistan frequently hosts meetings, lectures, and seminars that cover contemporary issues in environment and development. These events are great opportunities for stakeholder dialogues and networking and are attended by representatives of different institutions and sectors, including the government, think tanks, corporate organisations, NGOs, academia, media and foreign missions. Participants benefit from the rich debate, sharing of ideas, and identification of areas for research and action. Another means of outreach are the electronic and print media and periodic publications such as Updates and Lectures through which LEAD Pakistan discusses its activities and concerns with varied audiences.