Islamabad: (Parliament Times) With a view to inspiring youth to harness their full
potential through leveraging generation equality, the UN Women Pakistan, in collaboration
with the National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST), organised a “Youth Dialogue
on Generation Equality: Realising Women’s Rights for an Equal Future” at the university’s
main campus here on Friday. Graced by the presence of Regional Director of UN Women for
Asia & the Pacific, Mr Mohammad Naciri, as chief guest, the dialogue was in line with the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which is grounded in Gender Equality and the
Empowerment of Women.
The event was held at the 25 th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration & Platform for Action
which was ratified in 1995 and endorsed by 189 governments at the “4 th World Conference
on Women held in Beijing,” China and powered by the 21st century women’s movements.
In his remarks, Mr Mohammad Naciri said that gender equality and women empowerment
are the backbone of a progressive society. He maintained that the UN Women’s campaign of
“Generation Equality: Realising Women’s Rights for an Equal Future,” calls for equal pay,
equal sharing of unpaid care and domestic work, an end to sexual harassment and violence
against women, healthcare services that respond to their needs, and women’s equal
participation in political life and in decision-making in all spheres of life.
Earlier in his welcome remarks, Dr Nassar Ikram, NUST Pro-Rector Research Innovation &
Commercialisation (RIC), said that the dialogue provided an ideal platform to discuss and
devise ways to achieve the SDGs through engaging and empowering women, and ensuring
their inclusion in every development agenda. Talking about NUST efforts towards women
empowerment, he said that NUST is cognisant of its role in eliminating the gender gap
through ensuring right to access to education for all, inclusion through skills development,
access to employment, and so on.
The UN Women in Pakistan works with public and private partners to create a conducive
environment, where women can benefit from equal social and economic development
opportunities; live a life free from violence in private and public spaces, and where
survivors of violence can access quality essential services.
Other speakers included Ms Uzma Kardar, Member Provincial Assembly Punjab; a NUST
alumna; Ms Maya Zaman, a successful entrepreneur from the Transgender community; and
Ms Aqsa Ajmal, a NUST student who recently made headlines for seizing a slot amongst 6
global finalists for the Lexus Design Award, to be held in Italy later this year. A large
number of women across different professions, and students participated in the event. The
event ended with closing remarks by Ms Aisha Mukhtar, Deputy Country Representative
UN Women, Pakistan.
