NAME OF ORGANIZATION:

Ministry of Women Development, Social Welfare and Special Education

ADDRESS:

State Life Building No.5
Blue Area, Islamabad
Pakistan
Tel: 92-51-9211145-0092-51-9211159
Fax: 92-51-9206462-009251-9203132
Email: mowdswse@comsats.net.pk

STATUS:

Governmental

HEAD OF ORGANIZATION:

Secretary

YEAR OF ESTABLISHMENT:

1979
To uphold the status of women in Pakistan

LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY:

The Ministry of Women=s Development was created as one of the Federal Ministries of the Government of Pakistan under the provisions of the ARules of Business@ Which derives legal authority from the provision of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 (Article 99 of the Constitution).

OBJECTIVES AND FUNCTIONS:

Functions under the Rules of Business:

1. Matters relating to formulation of public policies and laws to meet their special needs of women, ensuring that women=s interests and needs are adequately represented in public policy formulation by various organs and agencies of Government.
2. Registration of and assistance to women=s organization
3. Promotion and undertaking of projects for providing special facilities for women.
4. Promotion and undertaking of research on conditions and problems of women.
5. Pakistan=s representation in international organizations dealing with problems of women in bilateral contacts with other countries.
6. Matters relating to equality of opportunity in education and employment and fuller participation of women an all spheres of national organizations in the field of social Welfare.
7. National Planning and co-ordinate in the fields of social Welfare.
8. Dealing and agreements with other countries and international organizations in the field of social Welfare.
9. Charitable endowments
10. National Council of social Welfare grants in aid to voluntary special welfare agencies
11. Federal agencies and institutions for social welfare research.
12. Standards of social work and education.
13. Training and education of disabled.
14. Administrative Control of National Zakat Foundation.
15. Custody protection treatment and rehabilitation of children involved in crimes, setting up improvement of juvenile courts.

MAJOR ACTIVITIES:

The Government of Pakistan acceded to CEDAW on March 12 1996. The first National Report on the Implementation of CEDAW is in the finalization stage and will be sent to the UN shortly. The National Plan of Action (NPA) for the advancement of Women, based on the Beijing Platform for Action was approved by the prime Minister in his address to the Nation on august 14, 1998 by adopting it as a working document. Prepared on the basis of a national participatory process, involving federal and provincial governments. NGOs women organisations and individual experts, the NPA aims to facilitate women=s participation in all spheres of life besides ensuring protection of women rights within the family and the society. The NPA establishes a set of 182 actions calculated to achieve the empowerment of women as a national objective. There are specific roles to be played by federal ministries, provincial governments as key institutions and multi-dimensional approach: of these 59 are policy oriented, 23 need legislative changes and 100 would require financial support by the line departments, provincial governments and federal ministries.

The ministries of women development (MOWD), as the national machinery for the government of Pakistan (GoP) has the primary responsibility for integrated and comprehensive implementation of the national of Plan of Action (NPA),it also takes the lead role in coordinating, monitoring and evaluating progress in the advancement of women.

Strenuous efforts have been made to build federal and provincial networks which also involve in instructions outside the government to ensure effective implementation at all level particularly of the District level.

STAFF:

BUDGET:

Personnel Project/activities Total
1998: 21,596,000 50,000,000 71,596,000
1999: 18,740,000 30,000,000 48,740,000

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: