The Government of Pakistan on Tuesday reaffirmed its commitment to advancing women’s economic empowerment through integrated education, technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and labour market reforms at the OIC Women Development Organization (OIC-WDO) Conference held in Cairo.
The conference on Harnessing Religious and Media Discourse and its Impact on the Promotion and Protection of Women’s Rights in OIC Member States took place at the Al-Azhar Al-Sharif Centre from Feb. 1–2 under the auspices of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.
Leading the Pakistani delegation, Minister of State for Federal Education and Professional Training Ms. Wajiha Qamar, along with Ms. Mehreen Gul representing the Ministry of Human Rights, stressed that increasing women’s participation in the labour force is both a social imperative and a key driver of sustainable economic growth, particularly for countries facing demographic and economic challenges.
The delegation highlighted Pakistan’s ongoing initiatives aimed at removing structural barriers to women’s employment, including women entrepreneurship policies, labour law reforms, digital skills development programmes, women-friendly workplace measures, and strengthened social protection mechanisms.
From an education and TVET perspective, Pakistan emphasized the importance of demand-driven skills aligned with emerging growth sectors, as well as care-supportive infrastructure to improve women’s retention in training programmes and formal employment.
The delegation also underlined the need to integrate financial inclusion with certified skills, entrepreneurship support and digital literacy, enabling women to transition into productive and sustainable livelihoods.
Concluding the intervention, Pakistan stressed that a coordinated approach combining education, skills development, care infrastructure, financial inclusion and robust legal protections is essential to unlocking women’s economic potential, describing such integrated policies as one of the most effective pathways to inclusive and sustainable growth across OIC member states.
As a member of the Women Development Organization, Pakistan reaffirmed its strong commitment to the WDO’s mandate. The Ministry of Human Rights, as the lead ministry for WDO in Pakistan, continues to play a central role in advancing national and international cooperation to promote and protect women’s rights within OIC countries.