Winners of PINKtober Youth Awareness Programme announced

Islamabad

Pink Ribbon in collaboration with Higher Education Commission (HEC) held awards ceremony to announce the winners of PINKtober Youth Awareness Programme.

Since October is known as Breast Cancer Awareness month all over the world, Pink Ribbon Pakistan celebrates the entire month as PINKtober followed by an extensive youth awareness programme. 

Different activities like seminars, walks, poster competitions, panel discussions material dissemination and other events are organised to highlight the issue. The focus of the youth programme is to spread early detection that increases more than 90 per cent chances of survival. So far, the programme has reached out to more than 640,000 girls through hundreds of academic institutions in almost 5 years. These students are sensitised on global standards and techniques of early detection, enabling them to make better healthy choices in future.

Awards for PINKtober Youth Awareness Programme are a sign of recognition to all the universities who have shown their best performance in spreading the message of breast cancer awareness.

National Textile University secured first position followed by Institutes of Home Sciences- University of Agriculture Faisalabad and Lahore School of Economics securing second and third position in the category of universities.

In college category, Islamia Girls College secured first position with Government Girls (Zubeidah) College and Government Postgraduate College for Women, Dera Ghazi Khan, at second and third position.

Special awards are given to Department of Home and Food Sciences- Government College Women University Faisalabad and Sindh Madressatul Islam University.

Lahore University of Management Sciences, Forman Christian College, University of Central Punjab, Kinnaird College for Women University, Alhamd Islamic University Quetta, University of Poonch, University College of Islamabad, Government Degree College for Women, Kot Khwaja Saeed, Lahore, University of Karachi, University of Haripur, Government College University, Faisalabad, Lahore College for Women University, CMH Medical College, Sarhad University, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Women Institute of Learning Abbottabad and University of Education were recognized for their maximum support to PINKtober Campaign. Some of these institutes have been involved since the inception of the program.

Higher Education Commission has been working with Pink Ribbon since 2012. Pink Ribbon Campaign CEO Omer Aftab stated that the incidence of breast cancer is increasing in young girls in Pakistan and awareness is the only key to survival. “We need to prepare our generation to be health conscious so they can have a better future.”

HEC Chairman Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed stated that HEC is hopeful that this programme will keep benefiting the society and a continuous programme can naturally save thousands of lives.  He assured that Higher Education Commission would continue to serve as a bridge between Pink Ribbon and Higher Education institutions for increasing awareness about breast cancer among the youth of Pakistan. 

Learning Innovation Adviser Shaheen Khan also applauded the efforts of Pink Ribbon in creating awareness among the youth of Pakistan.