WOMEN'S HOSTEL PROJECT

Speeches Shim

The Women's Hostel Project supported the construction of a women's dormitory at Forman Christian College in Lahore. Nearly 1,000 women study at the college, and they constitute more than 30 percent of the total student body. However, the college lacked sufficient on-campus housing for female students from areas outside Lahore, particularly those from remote areas of southern Punjab, northern Sindh, FATA, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The USAID-funded women's hostel, named Hope Tower, provides lodging for 386 female students in a safe, women-only environment, thus permitting the university to attract more female students, especially at the graduate level.     

Hope Tower was completed on October 23, 2014 with the first group of female students occupying it on October 24, 2014. The hostel was inaugurated on November 12, 2014 by then-USAID Mission Director Gregory Gottlieb.  The construction of a new sewage pumping station and entrance gate rooms commenced in November 2014 was completed in March 2015.

Objectives
 
The main objective of the Women's Hostel Project was to expand access to higher education for Pakistani women, particularly those from remote areas, by providing them with a residence at the Forman Christian College in Lahore.
 
Main Activities
  • Construction of a six-story hostel building providing single and double occupancy rooms for 386 students, warden and assistant warden apartments, lounges on each floor, dining and laundry areas, two elevators and a back-up generator.
  • Construction of a sewage pumping station.