The federal Women Parliamentary Caucus (WPC) initiated a dialogue on strengthening the parliamentary quota system as part of its observance of National Women’s Day, which is commemorated on February 12 every year. The first round of the dialogue was held under the chairpersonship of WPC Secretary Dr. Shahida Rehmani on Thursday.

The discussions during the inaugural session of the dialog focused on an appraisal of the current reservation of seats for women in the Parliament and Provincial Assemblies and the need for continuing debate on reforming the system to fully realize the constitutional promise of “full participation of women in all spheres of national life”.

The session was attended by the Deputy Speakers of the Provincial Assemblies of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, women parliamentarians from the National Assembly and the Senate, parliamentary experts, and representatives of civil society.

Parliamentary experts acknowledged the substantive role played by women elected on reserved seats in parliamentary proceedings. They noted women’s consistent contribution to parliamentary agenda and quorum maintenance.

FAFEN’s reports on women parliamentarians’ performance have consistently demonstrated that women legislators significantly contributed to the parliamentary agenda and discussions. During 2024-2025, women parliamentarians contributed 49 percent of the total parliamentary business, including 55 percent in the National Assembly and 31 percent in the Senate, despite constituting a much smaller proportion of the total membership.

Read Women Parliamentarians Performance Report (2024-25)

Speakers emphasized the need to reform the existing quota framework to enhance women’s representativeness and influence in parliamentary processes. Proposals discussed during the dialogue ranged from improving representational mechanisms within the current party-list based proportional allocation model to introducing direct election methods for women on reserved seats.

Women parliamentarians shared their experiences regarding financial constraints, political marginalization, and social challenges that impede effective participation in electoral politics.

FAFEN has been consistently highlighting the representativeness issues of reserved seats and recommending reforms in the method of election on these seats.

At the conclusion of the dialogue, the Caucus adopted a resolution reaffirming its commitment to advancing women’s political participation at all levels, including within political parties, electoral processes, legislatures, and decision-making forums. The resolution called for stronger legal, institutional, and administrative measures to prevent and address violence against women in politics, including harassment and intimidation both offline and online, through safe complaint mechanisms and accountability frameworks.