Women’s empowerment in Pakistan

Women’s empowerment in Pakistan is heavily dependent on many different variables that include geographical location (urban/rural), educational status, social status, and age. Working women of Pakistan have always tried to improve the financial stability of their respective households but sadly their work is always undervalued. Empowering socially, economically, educationally, politically and legally has always been a difficult task to achieve in an underdeveloped country. Therefore, Pakistani policymakers should specifically, make the policies on women’s empowerment at the national level for health, education, economic opportunities, gender-based violence, and political participation.

Pakistan’s women development model is very much a work in progress where deep-rooted challenges remain. The World Economic Forum has placed Pakistan as the second-worst country on gender equality in its 2017 Global Gender Gap Index. The index placed Pakistan 143rd out of 144 countries, worst in the South Asian region. Bangladesh, ranked at 47, is the only country in the region to have made the top 50 whereas India is at 108 after dropping 21 notches compared to its previous position. The Maldives ranked 106, Sri Lanka 109, Nepal 111 and Bhutan 143.

This is a dangerous state of affairs for our society. Denying women opportunities to realize their potential is a waste of human capital and bar to economic progress. Women have played a key role in the creation of Pakistan; they have the potential and should be treated equally and fairly. The Women, Peace and Security Index ranks Pakistan as 4th amongst the countries termed worst for women in terms of their peace, security, inclusion, and justice. It is fair to say that women are undoubtedly the foundation of the basic unit of society, the family. Even in traditional roles, they demonstrate great innovation, skill, intelligence, hard work, and commitment. If we can harness these attributes effectively, Pakistan’s growth can be more inclusive and equitable. Women are contributing to Pakistan’s economy in many ways. One of the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) studies determines that women’s economic empowerment is key to growth and could boost Pakistan’s GDP by 30 percent.

An illiterate woman in an unskilled job earns less than an unskilled man and it is not only limited to unskilled jobs. The gender pay gap even exists at higher professional levels. There are several hardships that a woman entrepreneur is bound to face if she wants to have any kind of success in Pakistan’s male-dominated society. The family responsibilities of women hinder them from concentrating solely on business activities. A married woman entrepreneur has to manage the household, take care of her children, husband, and in-laws all which leave her small amount of time to focus on her work. Female entrepreneurs always suffer from inadequate financial resources and working capital. There are different DFIs and International Donor Agencies providing concessional financing to female entrepreneurs in Pakistan but those facilities are limited to a limited segment only. As a matter of fact, most of the women entrepreneurs struggle to acquire much-needed start-up money from banks and financial institutions.