Barriers to Women's Political Empowerment in Pakistan and Recommendations for the Way Forward

Abstract

Women’s political empowerment in Pakistan remains constrained by structural, cultural, and institutional barriers despite constitutional guarantees and the provision of reserved seats. Low representation in directly elected positions, gender gaps in voter registration, entrenched patriarchal norms, limited access to financial and political resources, and the prevalence of harassment and intimidation continue to restrict women’s effective participation. Political parties often reinforce these barriers by marginalizing women within leadership hierarchies and limiting their access to winnable constituencies. While institutional mechanisms such as the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) provide a framework for gender inclusion, weak implementation and lack of accountability dilute their effectiveness. To address these challenges, a multi-pronged strategy is required: strengthening voter registration drives, providing financial and training support to women candidates, enforcing party-level nomination quotas, reforming reserved-seat mechanisms, and enhancing legal protections against harassment. Such reforms, coupled with community-level awareness campaigns and stronger institutional monitoring, are essential to foster meaningful political inclusion. Advancing women’s political empowerment is not only a matter of gender equality but also a prerequisite for deepening democracy and achieving sustainable development in Pakistan.

Keywords:  Women’s Political Empowerment, Gender and Politics, Political Participation, Reserved Seats, Patriarchy and Social Norms