| ECI

Jan 2010 - June 2010: ECI implemented the USAID FIRMS ‘Supporting Institutions as Change Agents Initiative’ to strengthen capacity for service delivery of up to 10 selected Support Institutions including Chambers of Commerce, Business Associations and University Career Development Cells.

Thirty organizations with the potential to increase women’s economic participation were identified to a 2-day workshop on ‘Supporting Institutions as Agents of Change’ focused on orienting SI’s to the initiative and inviting interested organizations to participate. Once Expressions of Interest (EOIs) were received from SI’s, a competitive process was initiated by ECI, in collaboration with the FIRMS team, where visits, in-depth discussions and interviews were conducted with each organization prior to selection. These included:

Islamabad Women’s Chamber of Commerce & Industry (IWCCA)	Association of Business Professional & Agricultural Women (ABP&AW)	Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry Women Entrepreneurs Subcommittee (KCCI)	Sindh Women’s Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SWCCI)

Sukkur Institute for Business Administration (IBA) Career Development Center	Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Women Entrepreneurs Subcommittee (LCCI)	Sardar Bahadur Khan Womens University, Balochistan	Institute for Management Sciences (IM Sciences) Entrepreneurship Development Center, Peshawar

Two to three representatives from each SI was then invited to a 2-day workshop on ‘Resources to Recruit, Retain and Grow your Members’ subsequent to which the FIRMS project worked with each SI to provide one-on-one technical assistance.