Pakistan’s Women’s Parliamentary Caucus (WPC) has affirmed its commitment to confront the dual challenges of online gender-based violence and cervical cancer, following a pivotal assembly at the Parliament House on Tuesday. The session highlighted the development of a national strategy against technology-facilitated abuse and threw its weight behind a major national immunization campaign for young girls.
The 11th General Assembly Meeting, convened by WPC Secretary Dr. Shahida Rehmani, brought together a large number of lawmakers dedicated to advancing women’s empowerment.
A significant portion of the proceedings was dedicated to a briefing by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on Pakistan’s first National Strategy on Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV). This groundbreaking initiative, developed with the Ministry of Human Rights, aims to tackle a complex governance challenge that disproportionately harms women and girls.
Parliamentarians engaged in a substantive dialogue on global policy trends, content moderation mechanisms, and legislative oversight to strengthen leadership in combating digital violence. The discussion emphasized the need for effective advocacy to protect vulnerable populations from online harms.
The gathering also received a comprehensive presentation from the Federal Directorate of Immunization regarding the forthcoming Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign. This crucial public health initiative is designed to prevent cervical cancer.
The campaign is scheduled to run from September 15 to 27, 2025, across Punjab, Sindh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Islamabad. It will provide a free, single-dose, WHO-approved vaccine to girls aged 9-14 years. Caucus members received informational brochures and expressed their solidarity in raising public awareness for the life-saving program.
Reaffirming their resolve, the WPC members pledged to champion these priority areas. The meeting concluded with a strong call for coordinated action among parliamentarians, government bodies, civil society, and international partners to translate the day’s deliberations into tangible outcomes for women and girls across Pakistan.
The session was attended by prominent members including Dr. Nikhat Shakeel Khan, Convenor of the Parliamentary Caucus on Child Rights; Parliamentary Secretaries Ms. Rana Ansar, Ms. Sabheen Ghoury, and Ms. Saba Sadiq; and MNAs Ms. Syeda Shehla Raza, Ms. Huma Chughtai, Ms. Sofia Saeed Shah, Ms. Tamkeen Akhtar Niazi, Ms. Shahnaz Saleem Malik, Ms. Natasha Daultana, Ms. Samina Khalid Ghurki, Ms. Naima Kanwal, Ms. Mahtab Akbar Rashdi, Ms. Akhtar Bibi, Ms. Muneeba Iqbal, Dr. Shazia Sobia Aslam Soomro, Ms. Naeema Kishwar Khan, Ms. Mussarat Rafique Mahesar, Ms. Gulnaz Shahzadi, and Ms. Naz Baloch.