The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan hosted an educational visit for participants of the Islamabad Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry at its Head Office, led by IWCCI President Samina Fazil, aimed at giving aspiring and established women entrepreneurs practical exposure to Pakistan’s formal business environment. The visit addresses a gap that frequently limits how many women-led enterprises transition from informal operations into fully registered, compliant businesses, a lack of accessible, hands-on guidance on what formalization actually requires in practice rather than in regulatory text alone.
SECP officials structured the visit around detailed capacity-building sessions tailored specifically for the participants rather than a general orientation to the regulator’s functions. Murtaza Naqvi, Joint Director, led a session on regulatory compliance, business structures, and corporate governance, emphasizing why compliance and strong governance practices matter beyond simply avoiding penalties, framing them instead as foundational to building a business capable of scaling sustainably and attracting external investment down the line. Saila Jamshaid, Additional Registrar, followed with a session on the company registration and incorporation process, walking participants through the practical steps required to formalize an enterprise rather than leaving that process opaque or intimidating for founders unfamiliar with regulatory procedure.
Pairing a governance-focused session with a hands-on registration walkthrough gives participants both the conceptual understanding of why formal structures matter and the concrete steps needed to act on that understanding, addressing two distinct barriers that often discourage women entrepreneurs from formalizing their businesses, uncertainty about long-term governance obligations and unfamiliarity with the registration process itself. For an audience spanning both aspiring and already-established entrepreneurs, structuring the visit this way meant newer founders could focus on the incorporation basics while more established business owners could engage more directly with the governance and compliance material relevant to scaling further.
The visit reflects SECP’s stated commitment to fostering an inclusive corporate ecosystem and supporting women-led enterprises specifically, positioning direct educational engagement with organizations like IWCCI as part of a broader strategy to promote formal economic growth across Pakistan. By working through an established chamber of commerce rather than reaching entrepreneurs individually, SECP is able to extend its outreach to a coordinated network of women business owners already engaged in formal advocacy and support structures, potentially amplifying the visit’s impact beyond the immediate group of attendees.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
