Govt Confers Tamgha-e-Imtiaz on Nadia Seth, Putting SMEDA in the Limelight

Staff Report

LAHORE- The government has conferred the prestigious Tamgha-e-Imtiaz on Nadia Jahangir Seth, Chief Executive Officer of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority, in recognition of her contributions to the development and implementation of the SME policy and dedicated efforts to promote women entrepreneurship for inclusive economic growth in Pakistan.

The national honour reflects Ms Seth’s visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to strengthening Pakistan’s SME sector, empowering entrepreneurs and advancing inclusive economic development across the country.

Speaking at a post-award meeting, Ms Seth described the recognition as an “honour for the entire institution” and reaffirmed SMEDA’s commitment to accelerating SME development through initiatives aimed at enhancing access to finance and promoting formalization, digital transformation, export readiness and women entrepreneurship.

“We must capitalize on this momentum and step up our efforts to build a stronger, more resilient and globally competitive SME ecosystem,” she said. She added that the organization remains committed to bridging the finance gap, expanding market access and supporting women-led businesses, especially in underserved areas.

Ms Seth said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during a recent Steering Committee meeting, appreciated SMEDA’s role in SME development, particularly its focus on women entrepreneurs and microenterprises. She noted that the encouragement from the government has further strengthened the Authority’s resolve to undertake transformative initiatives for the sector.

Recognizing access to finance as one of the most pressing challenges for SMEs, she said, SMEDA must step up efforts to strengthen linkages between small businesses and financial institutions for greater inclusion and formalization with concrete results.

She further said, “as women entrepreneurship has remained a central pillar of SMEDA’s agenda, we need to undertake targeted interventions in capacity building, digital and financial inclusion, business development and market access to enable women entrepreneurs to play a more proactive role in the national economy.”

Under the guidance of the Ministry of Industries & Production and in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of a resilient and competitive economy, SMEDA will expedite work on its strategic initiatives undertaken in recent months aimed at improving SME productivity, innovation and market integration to enhance their contribution to the national economic goals, said the CEO.

Later, the SMEDA team felicitated the CEO on the achievement and reaffirmed their resolve to make more meaningful contributions for the promotion and growth of SMEs and micro-businesses.