Bibi Tayyaba encourages ethnic minority women in Hong Kong to learn to swim by establishing the social enterprise “Pink Dolphin Academy Limited”.
“My dream is to open more doors for ethnic minority ladies,” Bibi Tayyaba emphasised. A Hong Kong born-and-raised Pakistani girl, Bibi continually strives to move closer to her goal. In 2021, she took the lead in encouraging Muslim and other minority ladies in Hong Kong to learn to swim by establishing the social enterprise “Pink Dolphin Academy Limited”. “I didn’t realise that ethnic minority girls, particularly Muslim sisters, lacked opportunities to learn and practise swimming in an environment that respected their values and beliefs, until the time my mother fell ill and her doctor advised her to be treated with hydrotherapy.” She decided to address this gap.
“I met Rachel, a representative of the Hong Kong swimming team at a gathering of JC Scholars and shared my ideas with her,” Bibi recalls. Sharing the view that anyone and everyone should be able to enjoy the fun and benefits of swimming, the two ladies organised their first swimming lesson, with Rachel taking on the coaching role. “We only had 10 participants on the first day, but everything worked well, and we received a great response from them. This encouraging experience laid the foundation of our future Pink Dolphin.” Bibi later became a lecturer at The Education University of Hong Kong after obtaining a master’s degree at the University of Oxford in the UK. She never forgot that first swimming lesson, however, and she was determined to play her part in making the community more inclusive through the social enterprise.
Today, Pink Dolphin has grown to be a water paradise, catering to over 200 trainees of nine different ethnicities, ranging in age from six to 65. “We want to keep providing a safe and carefree swimming environment for ethnic minority ladies and I hope they can become swimmers or trainers in Hong Kong themselves someday. I am dedicated to speaking out for the ethnic minorities, so they can gain more opportunities in the community and go beyond limits,” Bibi explains.
Over the past 26 years, recipients of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarships have come from a wide range of backgrounds, from local Chinese students to ethnic minority students, and from those who pursue music, atmospheric science, aerospace engineering and zoology, to budding teachers and educators. The programme has supported a number of students with special learning needs.
All scholarship recipients are members of The Jockey Club Scholars Alumni Association, forming a close-knit group to perform community service.
This story was originally published on The Hong Kong Jockey Club's "With You. Then. Now. Always." website.
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