Ministry of Foreign Affairs appoints Fouzia Fayyaz as councilor at their Consulate General in Jeddah She is the first female diplomat from Pakistan appointed to the Jeddah mission in its 70-year history ISLAMABAD: In its 70-year history, Pakistan’s Consulate General in Jeddah had never appointed a female diplomat — until last week, when it was announced that Fouzia Fayyaz would be the councilor at the mission. “I am very proud of Pakistan’s Foreign Service; it is their confidence in me (resulting from) my service by performing my duty at important missions such as Washington DC and New Delhi, that brought me here,” said Fayyaz. The first female diplomat from her hometown of Rahim Yar Khan, in Pakistan’s Punjab district, Fayyaz decided to go into the diplomatic service after completing a master’s degree, having received her family’s permission to pursue her dream and take her Central Superior Services exams. “Foreign service has always been open to the participation of women and has always extended great roles to the Pakistani female diplomats who have been a part of the organization,” Fayyaz told Arab News Pakistan, in an exclusive interview. “[Currently] our foreign secretary, who is heading our institution, is Tehmina Jenjua and women have [often] been sent to important capitals as ambassadors.”