Asia Saleh Khattak is a member of the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and a lawyer. She holds two degrees and is a social activist and political worker who supports human rights, with a focus on women's rights. During her career as a parliamentarian, she worked on transgender protection and on a bill to address rights and acid burns. She also is a master trainer on water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), gender mainstreaming, leadership, and climate change.

IVLP Impact Award Project: WASH, Health, and Hygiene

This project promoted basic hygiene practices in rural areas, improved basic hygiene among children and girls, and bolstered access to basic facilities in schools. Ten lectures by experts on health, hygiene, and water sanitation practices were given at schools, health centers, and in rural villages in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Community members gained knowledge of proper hand- and body-washing, along with strategies to domestically filter water, which will lead to a decrease in water borne diseases. 

Asia was also a panelist for the IVLP Impact Awards Alumni Discussion Series panel on “Global Public Health,” which you can read more about here.

"I hope that I will achieve my target by [raising] awareness in the community and with school-level girls." - Asia Saleh Khattak

IVLP Exchange Experience 

Asia participated in the IVLP Project Empowering Women in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Legislative Branches, organized by the U.S. Department of State and the Mississippi Consortium for International Development in partnership with the U.S. Department of State Office of International Visitors program branch in New York City and World Affairs Council of New Hampshire.

Asia's exchange experience led to the development of her IVLP Impact Award Project: "I was inspired during my IVLP program by the league of women who start their work without a single penny and without resources... This is a total inspiration that women can do anything they struggle for."

U.S. Communities Visited

Washington, DC; Manchester, NH; New York City, NY

Country: Pakistan

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