Aimed at acquiring tacit knowledge from experienced practitioners of civil services and imparting it to the audience as a food for their thought, the first program of the series of sessions ‘The Living Scripts’ was organized by IPS LEAD – the learning, excellence and development program of Institute of Policy Studies, Islamabad.- at the Institute’s premises on April 12, 2019.
The session was addressed by Syed Abu Ahmad Akif, a retired civil servant who served in BPS-22 grade (highest attainable rank for a serving officer) as the Cabinet Secretary and Climate Change Secretary, Government of Pakistan. Later he was also promoted to the rank of Federal Secretary by the then Prime Minister in 2016. A topper of 1982 CSS exams, Akif is specially known for his performance as a director general of Pakistan’s Hajj mission in Saudi Arabia from 2010–2015.
Starting from his childhood, to his academic days and then finally to his professional life, Akif shared with the audience an overview of various challenges and struggles he had to face and put up in life. He also shed light on his career’s transition period from working in a private advertising agency to serving in the public sector of Pakistan, enlightening the audience along the way with valuable insights on how the bureaucracy works in the country.
The speaker also shared his observations, experiences and learning from his visits and stays in developed countries like the US and Japan, sharing on the other hand various useful tips for the youth on how to stay composed and stand in the face of adversities and challenges that everyone who seeks to excel is bound to brave in life.
