Pak Witnesses a 56.4% Reduction on Global Gender Gap Index, Still Ranked ++ Country

News Desk

Islamabad: “According to the Global Gender Gap Report, Pakistan has closed the gender gap by 56.4 per cent, yet we are still ranked second lowest from the bottom. To create laws, regulations, and quotas that will bring change, it is critical to understand our current reality,” said National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) Chairperson Nilofar Bakhtiar at the 19^thInter-Provincial Ministerial Group (IPMG) meeting held in Islamabad.

The IPMG meeting was hosted by NCSW in collaboration with the UN Women, and the Bureau of International Narcotics & Law Enforcement (INL) of the US Department of State, to understand the data architecture at the national and provincial levels, and finalize the data collection methods for the National Gender Data Portal (NGDP).

To improve interprovincial coordination on gender equality and women’s empowerment in Pakistan, the Inter-Provincial Ministerial Group (IPMG) was founded in 2009. To facilitate the exchange of experiences and insights between national and provincial women’s machineries, 18 sessions have been held so far.

The idea of NGDP was envisioned in the 14^th IPMG meeting held in October 2019. The creation of this dynamic digital platform for collecting high-quality data and evidence on gender statistics from across Pakistan took two years of work and consultations with stakeholders and experts from the province, the country and around the world.

In a keynote address, Minister of Human Rights Main Riaz Hussain Pirzada said, “It is a proven fact that with the help of consistent and reliable data, there may be quick, effective steps and efforts to be done for protection and advancement of women’s rights and concerns.”

According to UN Women Pakistan Country Office Country Representative Sharmeela Rassool, “IPMG is an innovative platform for identifying solutions that are tailored for Pakistan.”

She stressed the significance of credible data for the growth of the nation and for gender equality. “One such example of a solution is the National Gender Data Portal. Data is crucial because it aids in detecting policy gaps and enables decision-making by officials,” she added.

“Gender inclusivity is a top priority,” INL Director Lori Antolinez stated during the meeting. The gender statistics gap still exists, highlighting the obstacles that still stand in the way of women’s and girls’ sovereignty.

Director Lori reiterated INL’s support and engagement with the Pakistani government, Pakistani citizens, UN Women’ and the NCSW’s commitment to gender equity and equality through responsive data architecture at the national and provincial levels by supporting the NGDP.

“Women play a critical part in the development of any country, and the growth process of such countries remained slow where the women are not provided equal opportunity,” Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Reform Ahsan Iqbal said.

“In order to prevent projects from being approved without considering the interests of women, the planning ministry has formed a gender section where all development projects would be developed using gender responsive planning principles,” he stated.