7 days ago
Pakistan regulator unveils gender policy to boost women's role in corporate, finance sectors
KARACHI: Pakistan's top financial regulator on Tuesday launched a draft policy aimed at tackling gender inequality in the country's corporate and financial sectors, seeking to improve women's representation on company boards, expand access to finance for women entrepreneurs and make workplaces more inclusive.
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) published its Women EquiSmart Policy 2025–2028 for public consultation on its website, calling it the first comprehensive gender framework for regulated sectors such as capital markets, insurance and non-banking finance.
'The draft framework reflects the SECP's strategic shift from fragmented diversity efforts to a structured, cohesive regulatory approach to gender inclusion, aligned with national priorities and global frameworks,' the regulator said in a statement.
The draft policy is built around six pillars, including women's leadership on boards, gender-disaggregated reporting, women's entrepreneurship, gender-smart financial products, inclusive workplace practices and institutional capacity building.
The statement said it identifies policy gaps, proposes timelines and regulatory actions and assigns roles to key stakeholders across the public and private sectors.
While Pakistan has seen efforts in recent years to promote workplace equality — such as corporate codes encouraging gender diversity — these have largely remained voluntary and inconsistently implemented.
SECP's proposed framework seeks to introduce a more enforceable and measurable approach to gender inclusion.
