April 23, 2006	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 24, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, April 22: The government is trying to increase the representation of women in every sphere of life to leverage their true potential and enable them to play an affective role in the country’s socio-economic development.

This was stated by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz while talking to a delegation of women activists from Nepal, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, who are attending a conference in Pakistan organised by the women development ministry.

Adviser to Prime Minister on Women Development Nilofar Bakhtiar was also present in the meeting.

The prime minister said previously women in Pakistan were under represented in political and social sphere. The restoration of reserve seats for women in the parliament and the policy of reserve seats for women in local bodies have gone a long way in enhancing their representation at the policy and decision-making levels.

Mr Aziz said women were facing a number of challenges. Therefore, the government is focusing on the economic empowerment of women to ensure respect and dignity for them in the society.

However, he said, women participation had been substantially enhanced in every walk of life. Pakistan now has women pilots in Pakistan Air Force and the government is planning to induct them in army as well.

The First Women Bank and the Micro Finance Bank are helping the women entrepreneurs, the prime minister added.

He said the government was committed to achieving the Millennium Development Goals, adding that this would not be possible without the full contribution of women in the development process.

The prime minister said women faced a number of challenges which stemmed from taboos, illiteracy, feudal culture and economic issues. The government, he said, was trying to bring an attitudinal change in the society towards women and trying to change the mindset of women through awareness campaigns.

The UN reforms process also came under discussion. The members of the delegation said that UN reforms process should also take into consideration the issues of gender equality and how to tackle the women issues in an effective manner.

The premier said the objective of UN reforms panel, of which he was a member, was to strengthen UN and make it a more affective and vibrant organisation. The discussions held so far focused on how to make various UN bodies more responsive to challenges faced by the world.

The meeting was attended among other by Bandana Rana, Women’s Commission of Nepal; Prof Pam Rajput, vice president and focal point NAWO, India; Chandra Bhadra, Associate Professor Padma Kanya College Tribhuvan University, Nepal; Dr Savitri Gunasekhare, Distinguished Professor of Law and International Gender Expert, Sri Lanka; Hameeda Hossain founder member, Ain O Salish Kendra, Bangladesh; and Prof Mahmuda Islam, Prof of Sociology and Women Studies, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh.