KP women lawmakers performed remarkable services: Fafen

Despite less in number, women legislators performed better by contributing more to the agenda items than their male counterparts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, says Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) in a report released on Thursday about the performance of women legislators observed between June 2013 and February 2017.
A ceremony was arranged at the provincial capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Thursday to pay tributes to women legislators for their remarkable contribution in enriching the agenda of the House. Deputy Speaker Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Dr Meher Taj Roghani was the guest of honour, who presented shields to women lawmakers on behalf of Trust for Democratic Education and Accountability - Free and Fair Election Network (TDEA-FAFEN). The ceremony was the continuation of events being held in the provincial capitals to honour women lawmakers for their parliamentary services and also coincided with the International Women's Day.
Deputy Speaker Dr Meher Taj Roghani applauded the efforts of women lawmakers in raising women issues in the Assembly and playing their role in the empowerment of the down-trodden despite severe challenges. She said as citizens, women have to fight for their equal rights. She said the importance of women legislators came to fore during the elections of Senate of Pakistan.
However, despite all challenges, women lawmakers have a higher attendance rate in the Assembly sittings than male lawmakers. According to the official attendance record, on average, a woman lawmaker attended 167 of 219 (76%) sittings held so far whereas a male lawmaker attended 133 (64%) sittings. Majority of the women have more than 70 per cent attendance during the reporting period, it said.
Furthermore, the women lawmakers contributed more than one-fifth of the Assembly's agenda during last 44 months. They submitted 693 (20%) Questions, eight adjournment motions (16%), 47 Calling Attention Notices (17%) demonstrating their interest in the Assembly's core function of overseeing the executive performance, report explained. They also represented public issues and aspirations through resolutions. The women sponsored 46 per cent of the resolutions brought before the House. Similarly, they also contributed to the legislation by sponsoring six out of 17 Private Members' bills.