International Women’s Day was celebrated on March 8, 2022 at the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Head Office, Islamabad.
Kanwal Shauzab, MNA and Parliamentary Secretary for Planning Development & Special Initiatives graced the occasion as Chief Guest. In her keynote address, she stressed upon the need for changing the mindset of society so that the anti-women bias may be eliminated. She also mentioned that the Federal Government is introducing conducive policies for women empowerment.
She emphasized that change should come from gross root level to bear long term fruits. “You need to empower yourself first and then go about changing the mindset of those around you,” she said, adding, “You should always seek to make a change at whatever stage of authority you are in your personal or professional lives”.
Ms. Sadia Khan, Commissioner SECP also spoke at the event. She highlighted SECP’s external interventions to promote gender diversity and financial inclusion in regulated sectors, with special focus on insurance sector.
Ms. Musarat Jabeen, Executive Director, SECP informed the participants about internal measures taken by SECP to promote gender mainstreaming. This includes introducing conducive policies, resulting in more representation of females in SECP in general as well as in leadership roles.
She shared that as a result of these policies, the women employment at the SECP has increased from 18% in 2019 to 23% in 2021, while 51% of new recruitment are female, over the last two years.
In the end, Aamir Khan, Chairman SECP addressed the gathering. He thanked Ms. Shauzab for gracing the occasion with her presence. He said, “Celebration of women’s day is delightful and sad at the same time. It celebrates the progress and struggle of women in achieving their rights but it is sad that they had to struggle much to get even the fundamental rights”. He underscored SECP’s commitment to gender-parity, both within SECP, as well as in its regulated sectors.
