To weave the tapestry of Green economy, socio-economic empowerment for females is necessary. opined Coordinator to Prime Minister on Climate Change & Environmental Coordination, Romina Khurshid Alam while addressing the curtain raiser press conference concerning the forthcoming two-day meeting of the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (APFFD) on ‘Gender Empowerment and Green Economy’ starting from Monday. Sharing the details of the upcoming meeting, Romina Khurshid Alam said, “In light of the 30th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo in 1994, the two-day international meeting of the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD) would focus on integrating gender equality into the green economy to foster sustainable development and inclusive economic growth”. She said that the meeting would also provide to the participants with a timely opportunity to reflect on and renew our commitments to gender equality and sustainable development, she emphasised.

The meeting will convene more than 20 parliamentarians from AFPPD member countries, enhancing Pakistan's image and reinforcing our ambitious role in the areas of climate action, gender equality, and the green economy. PM’s climate Aide Romina Khurshid said, “The gender equality in Pakistan will help achieving the sustainable development goals, education, health, good living, over all sanitation, green energy, and harmonious working environment. The coming event aims to deepen understanding of the gendered dimensions concerning the climate change and the green economy. It will help to bring forward the female vulnerabilities and strengths in number of sectors to ensure – the promotion of gender-responsive policies, equal access to resources, land rights, and financial services. PM’s climate Aide Romina Khurshid said that it is important to examine successful legislative frameworks in Asian countries to promote women’s participation in green sectors by fostering collaboration among parliamentarians to create a multi-dimensional enabling network.

It will address the gender-responsive green policies and will facilitate knowledge exchange, peer-to-peer learning. She said, “The conference would bring together parliamentarians and experts to explore effective legislative frameworks, promote gender-responsive policies and build collaborative networks to enhance women's participation in green sectors. In many countries, women are the champions of green economy, practising sustainable agriculture, nurturing our natural resources and promoting renewable energy”. Ms. Alam said that the event would also include study visits to local centers addressing health and climate change, providing participants with practical insights into the challenges and opportunities in gender empowerment within the green economy. She said, “For Pakistan, hosting this meeting is a crucial opportunity to demonstrate our leadership in integrating gender considerations into our national climate strategies.

Our participation as host of the Conference underscores our commitment to gender empowerment within the green economy and aligns with our broader climate action goals”. She said that Pakistan is at the forefront of climate action, with initiatives like the Green Pakistan Program, Climate Smart Agriculture, GLOF, Integrated Water Resource Management, Solarization, and Recharge Pakistan which address environmental concerns while emphasizing women's inclusion in these efforts. Romina said, “The said meeting would also provide a platform to showcase Pakistan’s case and share our experiences with other countries. AFPPD is a network of parliamentarians in Asia-Pacific region based in Tokyo, Japan. It serves as a forum and coordinating body of 30 National Committees of Parliamentarians on population and development initiatives”.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan