Ms Fozia Fayyaz Ahmed has become Pakistan’s first female consular at the Consulate General for Pakistan in Jeddah in seventy years of history between the two Muslim nations. Ms Fozia in an interview claimed that Pakistan is a country that adheres to progressive values and that recognises the potential and status of women. Ms Fozia claimed that her desire to succeed stemmed from her father who had always been supportive of her. She also added that her appointment had resulted in more women joining her section of the embassy in Jeddah. The diplomat graduated from the Islamia University in Bahawalpur with a Master’s degree in English Literature and was first appointed in Washington D.C, after which she worked in New Delhi. Fozia Ahmed’s appointment mirrors a modernisation drive that is occurring in Saudi Arabia under the aegis of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. This drive envisions a greater role for women in a country that has historically frowned upon feminism and on movements that see women playing a more active role in society.