Economic Empowerment of Women Home-Based Workers and Excluded Groups

Women from marginalized social classes face multiple challenges and are often only able to work from home. These women engaged in the informal sector of the economy are called Home-Based Workers (HBWs). Of the estimated 20 million HBWs in Pakistan, 12 million are women. According to UN Women’s Status Report, 2016 on Women’s Economic Participation and Empowerment in Pakistan, women account for 65 per cent of the PKR 400 billion (USD 2.8 billion) that HBWs contribute to Pakistan’s economy. However, most receive low wages and are denied legal protection and social security. To change this, UN Women Pakistan, with support from the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Pakistan, initiated a three-year (2017 – 2020) project ‘Economic Empowerment of Women Home-based Workers and Excluded Groups in Pakistan’. This documentary explains how women HBWs and members of excluded groups – such as transgenders and women with disabilities – were engaged and benefited from multipronged interventions.