"our women are capable of achieving anything."
Naila Kiani has become the second Pakistani woman to successfully scale Mount Everest, just weeks after she climbed Annapurna I.
The first Pakistani woman to scale the world’s highest mountain was Samina Baig in 2013.
Speaking about her achievement, Naila said:
“There is no better feeling than being on top of the mountain, holding the flag of your country, and making the whole nation proud.”
She explained that climbing Mount Everest was on her bucket list.
Naila expressed her gratitude to the BARD Foundation for its support and for sponsoring her successful Everest expedition.
She recently scaled K2 and also scaled Pakistan’s Gasherbrum-I and Gasherbrum-II.
After climbing Everest, Naila aspires to scale more 8,000-metre peaks in the future.
She aims to scale Lhotse, the fourth-highest mountain in the world, during her current visit to Nepal.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif said Naila had made Pakistan proud. He tweeted:
“Through her passion for mountaineering and amazing achievements to her credit, she has reinforced the notion that our women are capable of achieving anything.
“My heartiest congratulations to her and best wishes for her future plans.”
Naila is a banker based in Dubai and a mother of two daughters.
Naila first gained prominence as a mountaineer in 2018 after pictures of her wedding at K2’s base camp went viral.
Mehreen Dawood, managing director of BARD Foundation, said:
“Naila’s boundless enthusiasm has always inspired us.
“She stands as a shining example and serves as a gateway for all the women who work diligently to achieve their dreams.
“BARD Foundation takes immense pride in its longstanding association with Naila.
“Each of her achievements fills us with profound pride and joy.
“As she continues to scale new horizons, she has our constant support every step of the way.”
In addition to Naila’s success, Sajid Ali Sadpara became the first Pakistani to scale Mount Everest without the aid of high-altitude porters and supplemental oxygen.
Both Naila and Sajid began their journey to the world’s highest peak on the evening of May 13, 2023.
Alpine Club of Pakistan Secretary General Karar Haidri said Naila was the first Pakistani female mountaineer to climb four peaks over 8,000m and the second to scale Mount Everest.
Speaking about Sajid, General Haidri said he had scaled Mount Everest on May 14 without the support of supplemental oxygen and high-altitude porters.
General Haidri added that Sajid was now on his way down to C4.
Sajid tweeted that his feat was the dream of his father, the late Muhammad Ali Sadpara.
He has already scaled several high peaks, including K2, Gasherbrum-I and Gasherbrum-II, as well as Manaslu in Nepal, without supplemental oxygen.
His goal is to climb all 14 8,000-metre peaks without the support of supplemental oxygen.
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