PTA, MoITT formally commenced implementation of Digital Gender inclusion strategy

ISLAMABAD, Aug 09 (APP): With the inaugural meeting of the Steering Committee on Digital Gender Inclusion, the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT) in collaboration with Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has formally commenced the implementation of the Digital Gender inclusion strategy to significantly reduce digital gender divide within next three years.
The meeting was chaired by Minister of State for IT & Telecommunication (MoITT) Shaza Fatima Khawaja and convened by Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Major General (R) Hafeez Ur Rehman, said a news release issued here on Friday..
During the meeting, Shaza Fatima Khawaja emphasized the government’s commitment to advancing Pakistan’s Digital Gender Inclusion Strategy and highlighted the need for collective action to bridge the digital gender gap.
Chairman of PTA Maj. Gen (R) Hafeez Ur Rehman underscored PTA’s role in coordinating efforts and ensuring effective implementation through collaboration with key stakeholders and thematic working groups.
It was decided in the meeting that in order to assess the progress of working groups, a steering committee will meet every 3-4 months to review progress for which PTA will serve as the Secretariat.
Multi-sectorial collaboration is essential for closing the digital gender gap and advancing women’s role in Pakistan’s digital transformation.
The steering committee will be overseeing the smooth implementation of the strategy.
The committee will be continuously assessing the outcome of the identified thematic working groups on access, affordability, digital literacy, inclusion, safety, security, data and research.
The steering committee comprises representation from concerned government organizations, the private sector and academia including Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani, Minister for Colleges Higher & Technical Education Balochistan, Mohyuddin Ahmad Wani, Secretary Ministry of Federal Education & Professional Training, Dr. NaeemUz Zafar, Chief Statistician Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Aisha Humera Chaudhry, Secretary of the Ministry of IT & T, Prof. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman HEC; Dr. Babar Majid Bhatti, CEO National IT Board; Aamir Ibrahim, CEO Jazz; and Gulalai Khan from Lahore University of Management Sciences.
Technical Advisory Group will assist the Committee in discharging its responsibility.
The group members included Kar Hung Antony Tam country director of UNESCO, Julian Gorman and Lara Dewar from GSMA,. Waqas Hassan from the Global Digital Inclusion Partnership, Sadaf Khan of APC and Zara Higgs from TikTok were present at the meeting.
The working group heads Amer Shahzad, DG PTA, Ms. Rabiya Javeri Agha, Chairperson NCHR and Mr. Muhammad Ismail, Chief NCSW also joined the meeting.