Visiting the USA seems a distant dream for Sahib Khan who nurtured in the rural society by surviving on the limited opportunities.
“It was as if a dream had come true when I arrived in the United States. Freedom of Speech, Individual Liberty, and Preservation of Archival Legacy, just to name a few, were more exciting elements, I ever found during my exchange visit,” shared Khan.
Meetings with different people, who were using social media for the welfare of the community commendably, polished his spirit for volunteerism and community services. Through the support of PUAN, he organized various activities related to social media activism, which was the theme of his group’s exchange visit.
Sahib Khan also implemented an Alumni Small Grant (ASG) project on Media Safety under the SAFE initiative. Through this project around 120 journalists, from three selected districts (Khairpur, Naushehro Feroze, Shaheed Benazirabad /Nawab Shah) of Sindh Province, were trained for taking early safety measures while reporting the different events. “I believe that volunteering for a good cause will strengthen our own sense of self-esteem.”
During his stay in the U.S., he aesthetically enjoyed visiting the monuments and museums of D.C, the beautiful view of Harvard University in Boston, the John F. Kennedy Memorial and Students Cultural Activities at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Union Lake View, and the landscaping of Seattle and finally had wonderful Bus Tower of New York.
The outcome and impact of the exchange program were dynamic and multidimensional. His visit to various universities in the U.S. encouraged him to pursue higher education and after coming back, he completed his M.Phil. in Media Studies from the University of Sindh Jamshoro. The program paved the way for personal and professional development. It was the exchange program, that polished his skills. After returning, he worked as a Communication, Media, and Outreach Expert in USAID funded project U.S.- Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology Jamshoro. After serving there for three years he switched to World Bank-funded multi-sectoral project.
“Exchange program’s impact is long-lasting which changed behavior, improved public relations skills, increased love for culture and country, and volunteerism for public good and society at large,” said Sahib.
