Curtains fall on US-funded Citizens' Voice Project.

ISLAMABAD -- A United States funded 'The Citizens' Voice Project' concluded after eight years.

The project not only monitored general and by-elections, but made efforts to convince every woman to get identity card.

The project began in May 2011 with the funding of United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the amount was transferred to the Trust for Democratic Education and Accountability (TDEA) and different projects were completed by various organisations including the Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen).

Speaking at the concluding ceremony, Minister for Economic Affairs Hammad Azhar applauded the work of USAID in facilitating engagement between citizens and state institutions.

Thanking the American people for their assistance, he said the project had enabled the citizens to become part of the solution for accountable governance.

'The voices from organisations can enrich dialogue and help ensure that the needs of local populations are taken into account in policy making and development programmes.

This interplay can foster peacefulness in societies, build successful economies and improve how people experience their daily lives,' noted USAID Pakistan's Mission Director Julie Koenen.

Since 2011, The Citizens' Voice Project has worked to strengthen democracy in Pakistan through sustained investments in citizen engagement with public and elected institutions on transparent, responsive and accountable governance.

One of the major highlights of the project was its work on the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) Women National Identity Cards (NIC)...