Women in Pakistan

Women in Pakistan are as diverse as the country's population in terms of culture, religion, social status, political and community participation at local, national and global platforms.^[1] The socio-political and cultural factors including a prominent rural urban divide significantly shape the status of women across the region.^[2]

Women in Pakistan make up 48.76% of the population according to the 2017 census of Pakistan.^[3] Women in Pakistan have played an important role in Pakistani history^[4] and have had the right to vote since 1956.^[5] In Pakistan, women have held high office including Prime Minister, Speaker of the National Assembly, Leader of the Opposition, as well as federal ministers, judges,^[6] and serving commissioned posts in the armed forces, with Lieutenant General Nigar Johar attaining the highest military post for a woman.^[7][8] Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as the first woman Prime Minister of Pakistan on 2 December 1988.

Women in Pakistan are as diverse as the country's population in terms of culture, religion, social status, political and community participation at local, national and global platforms.^[1] The socio-political and cultural factors including a prominent rural urban divide significantly shape the status of women across the region.^[2]

Gender Concerns International reports that women's rights in Pakistan have improved overall, with the increasing number of educated and literate women.^{[9][10][11][12]} Yet, Pakistan continues to score poorly on the WPS Index in 2021, ranking 167th out of 170 countries, and has failed to make progress toward gender equality and women's rights.^[13] This score clearly reflects on existing social problems like gender inequality, domestic violence, workplace harassments, lack of decision-making power, illiteracy, limited opportunities and absence of adequate legal framework to address these challenges.^[14]

Pakistani women have been kept behind in the field of education due to low government funding,^[15] fewer schools and colleges for women, and a low enrollment rate of women in certain areas.^[16][17]The patriarchal system has created the social and cultural environment that is supporting persistence male domination, remains the major obstacle in the intellectual, social, and economic growth of women. ^[18] Cases of rape, honor killing, murder, and forced marriages in backward areas are also reported.^{[16][19][20][21]} All these issues are related to lack of education, poverty, a skewed judicial system, the negligence of government authorities to implement laws^[22][23] and widespread underperformance of law enforcement agencies such as the Police.^[24][25]