Tashfeen Niaz (1956 - 2016)
Foundation Accountancy 1977
Tashfeen Niaz’s Accountancy degree at the University of Sunderland was the springboard to over three decades of high-profile roles spanning three continents.
The chairman of the Sindh Revenue Board in Karachi, Tashfeen worked in the UK, Kuwait and Canada in a host of different jobs within the financial sector, in roles as wind ranging as tax management to corporate banking.
And yet, Tashfeen still remembered with fondness the University that put him on the road to success and singled out two lecturers who were instrumental towards his early development.
“The thing which I enjoyed about the Course was the dedication of the Academia,” he said.
“I was particularly very much impressed by David Austin who taught me accounting and also the teachers who taught me Economics, one of them was Professor Barnes.”
After joining the revenue board in 2013, Tashfeen put his years of experience and insights gained at Sunderland to good use. Under his leadership, the board became the largest sub-national sales tax collecting authority in the whole of Pakistan.
Despite his lofty success, Tashfeen’s advice for anyone looking to follow in his footsteps and secure their dream job was simple: “Be honest and dedicated. It may take time but you will achieve it.”
After overseeing the growth of the Revenue Board, Tashfeen planned to continue to make strides towards making Pakistan an increasingly stable and warm place to live.
He said: “I want to continue help with capacity building in Pakistan and the rest of the world so that we can have a world managed by professionals and living in peace enjoying their lives.”
We are deeply sorry to announce that Tashfeen Niaz passed away on 2nd June 2016 due to heart failure. The full press release can be found at this link: http://www.thenews.com.pk/print/124820-SRB-chairman-dies-of-cardiac-arrest
Article written by Matthew Shevlin, University of Sunderland Journalism graduate.