“New Avenues”

Bushra Rahim learned to value education from an early age. Born in the rural village of Sheikh Jana, Pakistan, she and her two older sisters relocated to Peshawar with their mother, who wanted them to “get a good education.” 

Now, as deputy director of Pakistan’s Ministry of Home & Tribal Affairs, Rahim aspires to make “a good education” available to children and women in her homeland.  

Rahim, whose career has included service with national ministries that oversee local governments, taxation, and finance, was determined to overcome such “workplace hurdles” as sexism and doubts about her age and experience. She earned master’s degrees from the University of Peshawar (computer science) and Australia’s University of New England (educational administration), and an M.B.A. from the City University of Science and Information Technology in Peshawar. 

In 2015, Rahim added a UAlbany doctorate in educational administration and policy to her academic credentials. Her dissertation identified “important factors related to retention and learning outcomes of schools in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.” 

The University “opened new avenues for me,” notes Rahim. As a Fulbright Scholar, she co-founded the non-profit NGO Development Agent for Change “to empower women, children, and youth through capacity-building in politics, education, and livelihood.” She has published numerous journal articles. One, co-written with Professor Aaron Benavot, her adviser at UAlbany, focused on evaluating learning assessments in Pakistan. 

Currently, with support from the British Council’s Charles Wallace Fellowship, Rahim is studying the United Kingdom’s system of local government. She plans to use the lessons gleaned from women councilors in the U.K. to “build synergies” with local governments in Pakistan.   

One of 14 Fulbright Heroes in Pakistan, Rahim also serves as president of the KP Association for Business, Agriculture, and Professional Women and the KP Fulbright Alumni Association. The organizations reach out to women about foreign scholarship programs, “especially Fulbright, and arrange networking events, workshops, and job fairs. We have also initiated skill-development centers where girls not only learn vocational skills but are taught numeracy and literacy, as well.” 

Rahim notes: “Evidence from both the developed and developing worlds indicates that there is a strong positive correlation between women’s positions in society and economic development. Depriving half of humanity from advancing their ideas, skills, and perspectives will have a detrimental effect on the well-being and prosperity of the world.”
   
Setting up free primary schools for rural children, “especially girls,” is another of Rahim’s initiatives. “My aim is to educate as many children as possible, and enable them to be good human beings and productive citizens.”  She is also working through the Pakistan Citizens’ Portal (PCP), launched by Prime Minister Imran Khan, “to encourage women to stay at their workplaces; diminish corruption; and reduce the miseries of tribal people, who have been enormously affected in the war against terror.” Her other priorities include “introducing IT into the decision-making system at the policy level,” and Green and Clean Pakistan’s efforts “to minimize pollution through planting.

At UAlbany, Rahim found inspiration for her work. She praises “the diverse student body; world-renowned faculty, research centers, and programs that “provide transformative learning experiences to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s world”; and collaborations that enable “national and international policymakers to provide rich opportunities to investigate the latest research-based models and to test the efficacy of these models in practice.”

In 2017, Rahim was “extremely excited and humbled” to receive the UAlbany Alumni Association’s International Award for Exceptional Achievement – an honor “meant for truly exceptional alumni who excel in their professions and have helped their countries by [making] outstanding contributions to government, science, education, or human welfare. It will always motivate me, inspiring me to work more diligently and passionately,” says Rahim.

“I am grateful to UAlbany and the faculty for accepting me as an international student, making me comfortable in the environment, opening my mind and instilling new skills and knowledge that I am using for the betterment of my society.”