SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON GENDER MAINSTREAMING MET TODAY UNDER THE CHAIRPERSONSHIP OF HON. DR. NAFISA SHAH, MNA.

 

National Assembly Committee Calls for Comprehensive National Care Economy Policy, Rejects Inadequate Briefings

 

Islamabad, July 9, 2026: The Special Committee on Gender Mainstreaming met today at Parliament House, Islamabad, under the chairpersonship of Hon. Dr. Nafisa Shah, MNA, to review the status of female labour force participation in Pakistan, with particular focus on the Care Economy, unpaid care work, and policy measures to enhance women's participation in the formal economy.

The Committee received comprehensive briefings on prevailing trends in female labour force participation, key barriers, Government initiatives, and policy measures to promote women's economic empowerment. It also deliberated on the economic and social significance of paid and unpaid care work, existing institutional support mechanisms, and measures required to strengthen the Care Economy.

 

The Hon. Chairperson and Members expressed serious concern over the absence of the Federal Secretaries of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, the Ministry of Human Rights, and the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, observing that representation by junior officers undermined parliamentary oversight and accountability. The Chairperson emphasized that matters of national importance require the personal participation of senior leadership.

 

During the meeting, the Committee reviewed presentations by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, and development partners. Members expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of the presentations, citing inadequate methodological clarity, limited policy analysis, and inconsistencies in female labour force participation data. The Committee sought detailed clarification regarding survey methodology, the treatment of unpaid care work, domestic work, and women's contributions to the informal agricultural sector, including those engaged under the Hari (sharecropping) system.

 

The Committee stressed the need for a nationally owned policy framework on the Care Economy, emphasizing that while technical assistance from development partners is valuable, policy direction must be led by the Government of Pakistan through evidence-based national strategies.

 

The Committee was informed of the Care Economy's significant potential to generate employment, increase female labour force participation, and contribute to economic growth. Members also reviewed the implementation status of the Protection of Domestic Workers Act, 2022, and expressed concern over weak enforcement despite the notification of the relevant rules.

 

The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development reaffirmed Pakistan's commitment to eliminating gender-based wage discrimination in line with ILO Conventions. The Committee was informed that the Pakistan Gender Pay Gap Report 2025, prepared in collaboration with the ILO, found that women earn 30 percent less in monthly wages and 25 percent less in 

 

hourly wages than men. The Ministry also briefed the Committee on initiatives under the Decent Work Country Programme (2023–2027) and the Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection to promote decent work, social protection, skills development, and the formalization of care and domestic work.

 

The Committee was further briefed on opportunities, challenges, legal safeguards, and Government initiatives to promote the safe, inclusive, and productive participation of women in overseas employment. Members were informed that the minimum age for women seeking overseas employment as domestic workers has been reduced from 35 years to 25 years under the Emigration Rules, 1979, with the objective of expanding safe and regulated employment opportunities, strengthening women's economic empowerment, and increasing remittance inflows.

Members discussed the absence of legal recognition for care workers, inadequate registration mechanisms for domestic workers, limited childcare infrastructure, compliance challenges faced by middle-income households, and the risks of exploitation and trafficking arising from unregulated domestic work.

 

Following detailed deliberations, the Committee recommended reviewing the Industrial Relations Act, 2012, to adopt gender-neutral terminology and extend legal recognition to care workers. It also recommended the development of a Care Worker Scorecard to monitor the integration of care workers into the formal economy, the establishment of a comprehensive registration system for domestic workers to safeguard both workers and employers, and the expansion of daycare facilities by replicating successful provincial and international models.

 

The Committee directed the Ministry of Human Rights to coordinate a consolidated inter-ministerial policy briefing on the Care Economy. The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics was instructed to clarify its statistical methodology and provide clear distinctions between unpaid work, domestic work, and care work. The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development was directed to develop concrete policy proposals for the training and overseas placement of female care workers, while the Planning Commission was asked to formulate a comprehensive national policy framework recognizing the Care Economy as a productive economic sector.

 

Expressing dissatisfaction with the official briefings, the Committee rejected the presentations made by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development and deferred further consideration of the agenda to its next meeting. The Committee directed the concerned Federal Secretaries to personally attend the subsequent meeting with comprehensive policy frameworks and well-prepared presentations, warning that continued non-compliance may invite parliamentary action.

 

The Committee approved the minutes of its previous meetings.

 

The meeting was attended by Senator Saadia Abbasi, Senator Rubina Qaimkhani, Senator Khalida Ateeb, Ms. Shaista Pervaiz, MNA, and Ms. Shahida Begum, MNA, along with the Additional Secretary, Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, and officers and officials from the Ministries of Human Rights, Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, and Planning, Development and Special Initiatives.