Nobel Peace Prize candidate hopes nomination will bring good name to Pakistan

Saqib is the founder of Akhuwat, Pakistan’s largest interest-free microfinance organization. He is one of 251 people and 92 organizations named as candidates for the annual prize, which includes a medal, diploma, 10 million Swedish crowns ($1 million), and rapid global attention.

The Nobel Peace Prize is one of five prizes established by Swedish businessman Alfred Nobel in 1895 to recognize people who “have conferred the greatest value to Mankind.” The other four awards are for physics, chemistry, medicine, and literature, respectively.

For his work in social mobilization and poverty alleviation, the Pakistani candidate has already got global recognition. He was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award, also known as Asia’s Nobel Prize, in 2021.

In a recent interview, Saqib said, “I am doing all of this work for Allah, so I am not too excited about awards.”

“However, this nomination is good news in the sense that it would bring goodwill to my country and represent a positive image of Pakistan to the outer world.”

In 2001, Saqib left his job in the Pakistan civil service to create Akhuwat. The group has opened 800 branches across Pakistan since its establishment, enabling hundreds of thousands of people to become self-sufficient.

“We created this interest-free loan fund in which wealthy people contribute and the institution

(Akhuwat) distributes it to needy people without any interest so that they can start a small business,” he explained, adding that the first loan was given to a woman who bought two sewing machines to start her business.

“Akhuwat University is an education project in which Akhuwat pays for all educational expenditures such as education, boarding, food, and clothing,” Saqib explained. “A few university colleges are already operational, with roughly 1,500 students receiving education.”