The Youth Affairs and Sports Department Punjab and the Bank of Punjab (BoP) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to introduce the CM Punjab Sports Card, a major initiative aimed at supporting talented athletes across the province through annual scholarships.
Sports Secretary Punjab Fazal-ur-Rehman was the chief guest at the MoU signing ceremony held at the Punjab Stadium on Friday. Director General Sports Punjab Muhammad Tariq Qureshi and BoP Chief Digital Officer Nofal Dawood signed the agreement and exchanged documents.
Deputy Director Sports Zahoor Ahmed, BoP Head of Branchless Banking Adnan Saleem, Senior Manager Relationship Alaaf Javed and Production Manager Zaigham also attended the ceremony.
Addressing the ceremony, Sports Secretary Punjab Fazal-ur-Rehman described the MoU signing as a day of delight for Punjab’s athletes. “The Youth Affairs and Sports Department Punjab would provide scholarships to outstanding athletes through the CM Punjab Sports Card”.
Sports Secretary Punjab Fazal-ur-Rehman said that in the first phase, 300 athletes will receive annual scholarships under three categories - platinum, gold and silver, with financial assistance of Rs 100,000, Rs 70,000 and Rs 50,000, respectively. “Our target is to provide CM Punjab Sports Cards to 1,000 athletes,” the sports secretary said.
Sports Secretary Punjab Fazal-ur-Rehman informed that the CM Punjab Sports Card’s formal launch would take place soon. “Sports culture is being promoted in line with the vision of CM Punjab Maryam Nawaz, with the objective of identifying and nurturing athletes capable of representing Pakistan at national and international levels”.
Sports Secretary Punjab Fazal-ur-Rehman further said that Punjab has become the first province of the country to introduce scholarships for its athletes through the CM Punjab Sports Card initiative. “Youth Affairs and Sports Department Punjab will continue to take such initiatives in future for the welfare of athletes”.