UN Women Advocates for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment via Private Sector Investment

Islamabad: 10^th September 2024 – UN Women Pakistan hosted an event in Islamabad titled ‘Shaping Tomorrow: Private Sector Engagement in Advancing Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment.’ The primary objective of the event was to advocate for greater involvement of private enterprises in driving gender equality initiatives, recognizing the critical role that businesses play in fostering inclusive economic growth.

By engaging the private sector, UN Women seeks to create more opportunities for women’s participation in the workforce, leadership roles, and entrepreneurship, as well as ensure that gender-sensitive policies are integrated into corporate practices.

In her opening remarks,  Maria Holtsberg – UN Women Country Representative a.i. emphasized the importance of collaboration with the private sector to achieve sustainable progress toward gender equality.

“The private sector has the power to accelerate the transformation we need for women’s economic empowerment. By investing in women, businesses not only strengthen their operations but also contribute to the broader development of society,” She further added,

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“Empowering women economically is a key to unlocking their full potential. This means ensuring equal pay for equal work, providing opportunities for women in leadership, and supporting women entrepreneurs. When women have the means and opportunities to contribute economically, entire communities’ benefit, leading to improved health, education, and social outcomes.

In keynote remarks, Mr. Jam Kamal Khan the Minister of Commerce, highlighted the importance of digital inclusion as a pathway to economic equality.

” The private sector plays a major role in driving change, and today’s event has showcased the need of collaboration in achieving gender equality. Technology is the great equalizer, and digital inclusion is the bridge to economic equality. By prioritizing digital inclusion, we can remove the barriers that have historically kept women out of the economic mainstream.  Ministry of Commerce, through its new e-commerce policy, will empower women by implementing various policies and facilitation measures,” the minister asserted.

The event also featured two insightful panel discussions. The first, “Leveraging Digital and Financial Inclusion for Enhanced Livelihoods of Our Women and Girls,” focused on improving access to finance and digital resources.

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Key speakers included  Musarat Jabeen from SECP, who discussed improving access to finance for women entrepreneurs;  Shumaila Rifaqat from Karandaaz, who spoke about promoting access to SMEs and financial inclusion; and Nadeem Malik from P@SHA, who addressed the gender digital divide. Ms. Rabia Khatak – Jazz shared insights on bridging the digital divide through technology and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

The second panel, “Investing in Women’s Leadership in the Private Sector,” highlighted the importance of supporting women in leadership roles within the business sector. This discussion featured Ms. Nazia from JICA, Mr. Ehsan Malik, CEO of Pakistan Business Council, and Mr. Ashan Jamil, CEO of Ubuntu Care, who shared their perspectives on fostering women’s leadership and driving systemic change in the private sector.

The event saw strong participation from key stakeholders, including private sector companies, WEPs signatories, financial institutions, donors, and international organizations. Together they discussed and devised strategies for enhancing women’s economic empowerment through private sector engagement.

Pakistan in the World – July / Aug 2024