PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly women lawmakers have developed programmes for political and economic empowerment of their gender for inclusion in the 2014-15 Annual Development Programme.

They developed the uplift plans at a three-day workshop jointly organised by Pak Women, a non-government organisation, and UN Women Fund for Gender Equality (FGE).

The workshop was meant to give an opportunity to the women lawmakers to discuss and prepare women-specific development plans to be included in the coming budget, according to a press release issued here on Tuesday.

Speakers on the occasion said that it was a matter of concern that only 3.7 per cent of the entire annual budget of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for the year 2013-14 had been allocated for women’s welfare.

The women lawmakers who attended the function were: Dr Maher Taj Roghani, Khatoon Bibi, Dina Naz, Maleha Khan, Ayesha Naeem, Nagina Khan, Amna Sardar, Nadia Sher, Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli, Zarin Zia, Uzma Khan, Nasim Hayat, Miraj Hamyun, Nargis Ali, Rashida Riffat, Bibi Fozia, Najma Shaheen, Romana Jalil, Ruqqya Hina, Yasmin Pir Mohammad and Shagufta.

Amanullah Khan, secretary provincial assembly, Saif Usmani, director finance department, Ali Asghar Khan of the Asghar Khan Foundation and Arshad Mehmood from Save the Children NGO were also in attendance.

The women lawmakers vowed to make all out efforts to get gender responsive programmes included in the coming ADP.

Azra Hussain, the executive director of Pak Women, stressed the need for women’s economic and political stability and protection of their rights. While describing the objectives of her NGO, she said it had been working for last 15 years for the rights of women, children and persons with disabilities.

Saif Usmani, director finance department, and other officials assured the women MPs that their proposed projects would be given full attention in the developmental programmes of the coming year.

Certificates were also distributed among the participants at the end of the function, according to the press release.