NCSW to conduct participatory dialogues on health, climate change, law

Islamabad:National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) inaugurated a series of participatory dialogues to bring together representatives from across Pakistan to deliberate and determine the way forward on key issues related to health, climate change, law and education.

Under Chairperson Nilofar Bakhtiar’s leadership, the Commission is taking lead to undertake a critical analysis and collaborative solution seeking to addressing critical issues affecting women in Pakistan. This comes in the year preceding the 30th Anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and adoption of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The main focus of the 69th Session to be held in March 2025 will be to review the implementation progress of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which Pakistan had committed to implement since 1996.

Between June 25th-28th 2024, the NCSW will have dedicated sessions and group deliberations on health, climate change, law reforms, and education. Each session will explore specific thematic areas that have been prioritized with key stakeholders, and work with provincial government representatives, civil society, UN partners, and experts to collate specific immediate actions that the government should undertake to see improvement of our gender indicators.

In partnership with UNFPA and Pathfinder, the health, climate and laws sessions would consider intersectional issues that disproportionately impact women and girls. The final conference on education, in collaboration with Unicef and the British Council, would examine barriers to education and propose strategies to promote inclusive and equitable learning opportunities.

Chairperson Nilofar Bakhtiar highlighted that these conferences mark the rollout of NCSW’s National Agenda for Women and Girls: The Next Horizon aiming to set a comprehensive framework for advancing women's rights nationwide. Bakhtiar emphasized the importance of these conferences in developing actionable plans and urged the media to support in the implementation of these initiatives, critical for the progress for the women and girls in Pakistan.