DRAFT REPORT

Raising Her Voice

Mid-Term Review
Oxfam GB ISLAMABAD
1/28/2011

Draft submitted by Adnan Sattar, consultant with OGB Islamabad

Contents
Acronyms.............................................................................................................................................. i
Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................................. ii
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ iii
1. Background and Context ........................................................................................................... 1
1.1

Contextual Realities .......................................................................................................... 1

1.2

RHV-Project Design & Implementation....................................................................... 3

1.3

Monitoring and Reporting: .............................................................................................. 3

1.4 Evaluation Methodology ...................................................................................................... 4

2.

Findings against Key Evaluation Questions ................................................................... 6

2.1

Impact................................................................................................................................... 6

2.2

Relevance ........................................................................................................................... 17

2.3

Equity .................................................................................................................................. 18

2.4

Effectiveness ..................................................................................................................... 19

2.5

Efficiency ............................................................................................................................ 21

2.6

Sustainability:................................................................................................................... 22

2.7

Replicability ....................................................................................................................... 23

3.

Progress and Constraints against Targets ................................................................... 24

4.

Review of Risks Analysis ................................................................................................... 32

5.

Recommendations ............................................................................................................... 34

Annexure ...............................................................................................................................................
Annex 1: Agenda for the Consultative Workshop.....................................................................
Annex 2: Focus Group Agenda .......................................................................................................
Annex 3: Survey Questionnaire .....................................................................................................
Annex 4: Respondents Profile (Sample Survey) ......................................................................

Acronyms
AF

Aurat Foundation

BISP

Benazir Income Support Programme

CAC

Citizen Action Committee

CCB

Citizen Community Board

CSN

Civil Society Network

DCO

District Coordination Officer

EDO

Executive District Officer

FAFEN

Free and Fair Election Network

GRAP

Gender Reforms Action Programme

HAP

Humanitarian Accountability Programme

KAP

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices

LFA

Logical Framework Analysis

LG

Local Government

LHV

Lady Health Visitor

LHW

Lady Health Worker

NADRA

National Data Registration Authority

OGB

Oxfam Great Britain

TEVTA

Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority

UC

Union Council

WLG

Women Leaders Group

Acknowledgments
The author would like to express his gratitude to project staff at Aurat Foundation (AF)
for providing background information and making arrangements for primary data
collection. National Project Manager Asim Malik, M&E Officer Anam Khan, Regional
Manager Punjab Mumtaz Mugal, and Regional Manager Sindh Malika Khan, were most
helpful. From Oxfam GB, Dr. Noreen Khalid and Feroza Zehra took keen interest in
planning the mid-term review. The present report is a result of combined efforts of a
small but dependable team recruited for the study. The author gratefully acknowledges
the contribution of Irum Fatima, Nasuhaba Baraijo and Rabia Naseer, who conducted
the telephonic survey; and Khurram Khan and Samreen Ghauri, who documented focus
group discussions at seven different locations in three provinces. The report would not
have been possible without their hard work.

ii

Executive Summary
The mid-term review was commissioned by Oxfam Great Britain (OGB) Islamabad to
provide an independent assessment of the progress and performance of the
programme, Raising Her Voice (RHV), now into the third year of implementation. Other
objectives included in the Terms of Reference (ToRs) were to:

Measure and report on achievements and early signs of change and impact.
Review equity, relevance, efficiency and value for money, effectiveness,
sustainability and replicability.
Indicate adjustments and changes that need to be made to ensure success.
Analyse the cost effectiveness of the different approaches taken.
Review the programmes risk analysis

The present report is an outcome of desk review, primary data collection, consultation
with funding and implementing partners staff and data analysis carried out during
December 2010 and January 2011. Evaluation findings reveal that the project has had
some impact on womens lives, including those of women leaders. It has also resulted
in some changes in institutional practices at grassroots level. However, the project has
had little wider impact on laws and policies, accountability and governance at different
tiers of the government.
Volunteers involved with the project report an increase in their self-confidence to
articulate issues and initiate collective action. The role played by these women and their
male counterparts in Citizen Action Committees (CACs) to voluntarily provide rescue
and relief service to the victims of 2010 floods in Pakistan is an evidence of their
leadership potential and courage. The women leader groups (WLGs) have brought
women from across the political divide together, which in itself is an achievement in a
polarized political environment.
However, not all women involved with the project can be said to be functional and
active members of the group. The sample survey with women leaders and FGDs with
WLG and CAC office-bearers helped identify a number of problems with the composition
and functioning of the groups. While, the groups have good representation of different
ethnic groups and occupational categories, religious minorities and women with
disabilities have been inadvertently excluded. There are marked variations between the
level of participation and capacities of different groups of women within districts and
across regions. Women in their 30s and 40s appear to have participated more actively
in project activities and have relatively greater awareness of relevant rights issues and
instruments compared to the youngest age cohort i.e. 18-24 year olds. Across regions,
Southern Punjab seems ahead of other regions in terms of participation of members
and their level of knowledge and capacities. By contrast, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
lags behind all other regions.
The projects approach of involving men in campaigning for womens rights has been
successful as it has facilitated womens access to male-dominated corridors of power
and helped them with operational and logistical issues. There is, however, an inbuilt
tension between voluntary work and paid activities. Male members are part of the
CACs, which existed prior to RHV and have expectations about financial support
informed by the experience of donor-funded work in the past.

iii

The project has been successful in facilitating a sizable number of women in acquiring
Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) and other documents. This can be
expected to pay significant social dividends by opening up new opportunities for women
in social and political domains. Partners have also made some headway in influencing
administrative practices at sub-district and district levels. For example, some
departments have partially implemented the Protection against Harassment at
Workplace Bill 2010 as a result of WLG and CAC efforts. One sign that local partners
have done meaningful work around the newly enacted law is that 73% women leaders
in the survey said they knew of it. The figure is more positive compared to response
pattern with regard to questions about other rights issues and instruments. District
Hyderabad in lower Sindh, Gujrat in Central Punjab and Bhawalpur in Southern Punjab
had 100% respondents saying they were aware of it. KP province at 34.6% again
lagged far behind other clusters. Awareness was also found to be higher among women
leaders with higher levels of education than the less educated ones and those who were
also members of the CAC in their district compared to non-CAC women leaders.
Evaluation findings lead us to conclude that the projects wider impact on governance
and public policy could increase significantly if advocacy at the grassroots level had
specific objectives articulated as desired changes in systems and practices, and if
community demands and salient legal and policy issues related to womens rights were
taken up as advocacy and lobbying agendas at provincial and federal levels. Half way
through the project duration, there appears to be a disconnect between the
implementing partners lobbying agenda and knowledge and perceptions within women
leaders. For example, in the sample survey, majority of respondents (75.6%) agreed
with the statement that Pakistan had laws that discriminated against women. However,
a notable 13.6% disagreed and close to11% said they did not know. The percentage
of those saying they agreed ranged from an impressive 93.5% in Upper Punjab to just
55.6% in KP Province.
In terms of corrective measures and with a view to scaling up impact, the evaluation
report sets out a case for bringing greater clarity on project goals and objectives and
the links with activities. There is room for improvement in projects monitoring
framework and a greater focus on qualitative results as against quantitative targets. It
is suggested that WLGs are revitalized by replacing inactive members and variations in
performance across region are taken into account as part of future planning. The report
also calls for the development of a sustainability plan. Such a plan could include certain
low-cost but critical inputs, for example, linking the WLGs up with a legal aid centre
would not only meet a very strong demand by women but also add to the groups
prestige and value. The sustainability plan, we suggest, would need to shift the focus
toward demand generation rather than logistical facilitation provided by WLGs and CACs
to communities.
The report, we hope, provides some useful insights into qualitative dimensions of
project implementation. Evaluation findings are expected to serve as a springboard of
ideas for better management and monitoring, timely corrective measures and scaling
up positive results.

iv

1. Background and Context

1.1 Contextual Realities
Out of 63 years of independent existence, Pakistan has been under military or quasimilitary rule for over 30 years. Constitution has been abrogated, fundamental rights
suspended, opposing voices silenced and constitutional amendments introduced
undemocratically time and again. Dictatorial regimes have also made political use of
Islam for suppressing dissent and individual freedoms, especially of women and
religious minorities. The most lasting and damaging legacy of undemocratic rule has
been peoples alienation from state institutions, public policy and social development
processes.
This alienation is in fact mirrored at the macro-level in economic indicators, which have
often shown impressive growth rates without translating into equitable human
development. The phenomenon is underlined by social divisions along gender, class,
ethnic and religious lines creating a vicious cycle of disarticulation and deprivation.
Those with resources and political power to command have had access to decisionmakers allowing them leverage to extract resources for themselves and their clients,
which in turn strengthens their voice and participation in public decision-making. As a
corollary, the socially marginalized-women, minorities, peasants and ordinary workershave had little, if any, access to decision-making, policy formulation and resource
allocation processes.
Public action itself is anchored in a system of patron and client relations, where the
support of a patron is sought irrespective of the merits of the case. Public apathy and
lack of participation in turn provides a breeding ground for unaccountable government,
poor decision-making, inappropriate priority-setting and irrational resource distribution.
Additionally, given the history of centralized governance by the state, ordinary people
especially the poor, have developed a certain kind of apathy towards the functions,
processes and outcomes of governance in the country. The devolved system of
governance introduced under the Local Government Ordinance 2002 was seen by many
as a creditable initiative to rectify the problems inherent in a centralized bureaucracy.
However, existing power structures and social divisions in terms of demand articulation,
access to information and means of communication and participation, constrained the
systems capacity to deliver goods for all and to ensure the protection of fundamental
rights. Most non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Pakistan continue to demand
that the system be reinstated. Despite many problems, the argument goes, the local
governments had allowed greater accountability of civil bureaucracy and involvement of
communities and women in local governance.
To its credit, the present government set about the long overdue task of constitutional
reforms soon after coming to power. The 18th Amendment Bill passed by the
Government has been hailed as a milestone in Pakistans constitutional history.
Removal of concurrent legislative list to allow greater devolution of power to provinces,
insertion of the Right to Fair Trial, Right to Information and Right to Education in the
Chapter on Fundamental Rights, and the removal of much misused powers with the
president to dissolve elected assemblies are among the most important features of the
amendment. At the societal level, increasingly vibrant media and rising share of the

youth in the countrys demographic composition present unprecedented opportunities

for better accountability and governance.
Amidst these positive signs a number of challenges persist, most notable being the
unabated wave of terror and religious and sectarian violence. In 2010, the country was
hit by the worst floods in its history. Rehabilitating millions of lives and livelihoods
affected by the disaster is a colossal task.
Feudal, patriarchal and tribal structures limit the capacity of many to exercise
constitutionally protected rights and freedoms. For example, while the Constitution and
the international human rights law guarantee right to fair trial, right to equal protection
before law and freedom from discrimination, informal courts or jirgas continue to hand
down degrading punishments, such as exchange marriages to settle tribal disputes. The
practice continues despite the passage of the Protection of Women (Criminal Law
Amendment Act) 2006, which outlawed the practice, known as sawara in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and wani in the Punjab province. The practice is sometimes
defended on the grounds of perceived larger benefits of dispute settlement. However,
from a human rights perspective, a greater good can never justify exchange of
women as mere commodities. Admittedly, one reason why practices such as swara
continue has to do with the lack of trust in lower courts and cumbersome legal
procedures. Informal dispute resolution mechanisms may dispense speedy justice and
help restore order but they do not operate by codified law or human rights principles,
such as according equal protection of law to men and women.
The Protection of Women Act 2006 also distinguishes honour killings from other
murders. A new clause added to Section 299 specifically mentions karo kari or siyah
kari as an offence committed in the name of honour. Previously, the Pakistan Penal
Code (PPC) included grave and sudden provocation as an exception in section 302,
allowing reduction of punishment for murder. The amended PPC does not contain the
exception. A proviso to section 302 now requires that in cases where a deliberate
murder is committed in the name or on the pretext of honour, it shall be punishable by
death or life imprisonment. The clause, which provides punishment with imprisonment
up to twenty five years, does not apply to cases of honour killings.
According to a report, over 600 women were murdered in the name of honour in the
year 2009 alone1. While legislative measures are necessary, states obligation to protect
womens right to life and personal security also require that law enforcement and
investigation personnel as well as general public are informed and sensitized about the
law. The same holds true for the Protection against Harassment at the Workplace Act,
2010 and the Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Bill 2009. The Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), requires
States Parties not only to bring their domestic laws in line with the Convention, but also
to ensure the practical realization of rights by undertaking extra measures to
implement enabling conditions so that womens capacity to access the opportunities
provided is enhanced. Article 5 asserts that States Parties must strive to modify the
social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women to eliminate prejudice based
on stereotyped beliefs of the inferiority of women.

State of Human Rights in 2009. Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), p 186.

1.2 RHV-Project Design & Implementation

Pakistan is among seventeen countries where Oxfam Great Britains (OGB) programme,
Raising Her Voice, is being implemented. Globally, the programme aims to ensure that
public policy, decision-making, practices and expenditure reflect the interests of poor
and marginalized women, especially those excluded from political, social and economic
life2. Toward this overall objective, the programme is supporting womens leadership
and addressing attitudes and beliefs about the role of women in public decision-making
using strategies such as media and communications work to disseminate learning and
best practice, networking, lobbying and advocacy, working with public institutions and
decision-making forums and empowering and building capacity of civil society
organisations3.
Subtitled Womens Effective Participation and Leadership in Decision-making in
Pakistan, the project officially commenced in July 2008 and is scheduled to end in the
year 2012. In Pakistan, the project is being implemented in thirty districts across
countrys four provinces. The main implementing partner, Aurat Publication and
Information Service Foundation, more commonly known as Aurat Foundation (AF), is
one of the most well-known non-governmental organisations in Pakistan. Most project
activities are being implemented by Women Leader Groups (WLGs), a voluntary group
of 50 women in each of the 30 districts, supported mainly by Citizen Action Committees
(CACs) established earlier by AF as part of another project4. Women leaders and CAC
members work as volunteers, with operational costs on planned project activities paid
for under RHV. The project is managed through a National Project Manager at the AF
head-office in Islamabad and Regional Managers in two provinces i.e. Sindh and
Punjab. Other two provinces i.e. Balochistan and KP are looked after by the regional
managers in Sindh and Punjab respectively.

1.3

Monitoring and Reporting:

On official accounts, project activities commenced in early 2009, the initial six months
or so taken up by a baseline study and identification of women leaders and formation of
WLGs. As we elaborate under evaluation findings, the way women leaders were
identified and recruited had implications for all activities to follow. Suffice it to mention
that bringing volunteers and supporters onboard cannot be seen as an addendum to
main activities. The impression that the process of group formation has fallen through
official monitoring cracks emanates from the absence of relevant indicators in the LFA
and inadequate discussion of its qualitative aspects in progress reports. Regrettably,
the RHV baseline was conducted in only five of the 30 target districts and the selection
of the sampled districts was never explained. The project LFA, the main monitoring
tool, has drawn (mostly) quantitative indicators from the baseline, some of which are
not measurable. Furthermore, it does not establish a proper logical hierarchy between
activities and results.

Terms of reference, Mid Term Review and Final Evaluation, GTF158 Raising Her Voice, p 1.
Ibid
4
CACs were set up in 1997 and had donor support up until 2005, which provided them a fixed monthly operational
allowance. Activities included awareness-raising and advocacy on violence against women, womens economic
empowerment and political participation. The 30 RHV districts are among the total 69 where CACs exist despite
the discontinuation of the donor support.
3

Project reporting and documentation appears up-to-date and fairly exhaustive in terms
of covering progress against quantitative targets and some best practices. However, it
is weak on analyzing and communicating qualitative results. This may have to do with
the fact that the project does not have a full-time M&E person on-board. Most activities
are documented by CAC and WLG volunteers, who on their own admission, have limited
capacity and time for this kind of work.

1.4 Evaluation Methodology

The evaluation was conducted using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods. A
brief description of the process and methodology follows:

Desk Review: Following initial meetings with OGB and the implementing partner,
AF, the consultant reviewed key project documents such as the project proposal
submitted by AF, annual work plans, progress reports and the baseline study.
Selected academic literature on womens rights and devolution and relevant laws
and policies were also reviewed. Methodology for primary data collection was
finalized in consultation with both AF and OGB.

Consultative Workshop with Project Staff: To get a broad picture of projects

implementation, successes and failures, a one-day workshop was held at
Islamabad bringing together project staff from the National Office, two regional
offices and the regional heads of the implementing partner (See Annex 1,
Consultative Workshop Agenda). The workshop helped review the project design,
goals, objectives, and the nature and scope of project activities. Using
appreciative inquiry as a tool, major achievements and the strategies that made
those achievements possible were identified. The participants also shared several
constraints they were facing with regard to implementing activities and reaching
targets. The discussion thus provided extremely important background
information for designing focus group discussion points and a survey
questionnaire for women leaders.

Telephonic Sample Survey with Women Activists: To assess the status of women
leader groups (WLGs), the level of members participation in project activities,
and their knowledge and perceptions with relation to key project themes, a
sample survey was deemed necessary. Given potential logistical problems in
administering questionnaires face-to-face, it was decided that the survey would
be conducted telephonically.
The sampling was done using simple random method in conjunction with
stratification for major occupational groups represented in the women leaders
groups. Taking 1500 women leaders as population and using a confidence level
of 95% and confidence interval of +-5, minimum sample size of slightly over 300
was obtained. The sample size was rounded up to 360 to have 12 women leaders
from each of the thirty target districts to make the sample more representative.
Stratification was done at the district level, ensuring the representation of former
elected representatives, NGO employees and social workers, and other
professional categories proportionate to their numbers in each district.
Interviewees were then picked up randomly. Unfortunately, the sampling frame
and the final lists turned out to be fairly problematic as at least 30% women
either did not have a phone number, or had a wrong number against their name.
However, 253 interviews with done using a structured, mostly close-ended

questionnaire (See Annex 2). The present report draws on data from all but
three districts, where hardly a couple of respondents could be contacted. In
addition to discussing the overall state of WLGs, the report also compares and
contrasts survey results by geographical clusters, which for the purposes of the
mid-term review are:
Balochistan: Jafarabad, Naseerabad and Sibi
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Abbotabad, Haripur and Nowshera
Upper Punjab: Attock, Jehlum, Chakwal and Rawalpindi
Central Punjab: Gujranwala, Gujrat, Hafizabad and Sialkot
Southern Punjab: Bhakkar, Bhawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan (D.G Khan),
Mianwali, Layyah, Multan and Rahim Yar Khan
Central-Central-Upper Sindh: Dadu, Sukkur, Ghotki, Jaccobabad and
Shikarpur
Lower Sindh: Hyderabad, Thatta, Tando Allah Yar and Shaheed
Benazirabad (formerly Nawabshah)

Focus Group Discussions with WLG and CAC Office Bearers: Brining together
general secretaries of WLGs and Coordinators of CACs from all 30 project
districts, seven focus group discussions were held at a central location in seven
clusters listed above. The FGDs provided useful contextual information, insights
into process followed, key achievements and challenges. Data collected has been
most useful in assessing the impact, relevance, effectiveness, replicability and
sustainability as well as putting survey findings into perspective. FGD agenda is
attached as Annex 3.

Semi-structured Interviews with Key Informants: A small number of interviews

were held with government officials in District Multan, Southern Punjab, District
Sukkur (Central-Upper Sindh) and District Hyderabad (Lower Sindh). The
purpose of the interview was to gauge the level of awareness of RHV among
government officials and assess the outcomes of advocacy work.
In addressing key evaluation questions, progress and constraints against targets,
the present report draws on information collected through all of the above
methods, synthesizing qualitative and quantitative data. Profile of the survey
respondents is included separately as Annex 4.

2. Findings against Key Evaluation Questions

2.1 Impact
The projects stated goal is to strengthen the role of poor and marginalized women in
governance, thereby promoting accountability for gender equality and womens
empowerment to achieve pro-poor development for women and the wider society. To
achieve the goal the project aims at addressing the rights of the poor women to
influence decision-making by enabling them to engage effectively in governance and
institutional accountability at all levels. This purpose is linked with four objectives (See
Box), which deal with: (1) development of linkages within and between women and
government institutions and civil society organisations (2) capacity building of women
including women elected representatives (3) promotion of women in leadership roles;
and (4) development of innovative media and communication strategies for advocacy.
Several issues pertaining to the project goal, purpose and objectives need a critical
reflection at the outset. These relate to attainability and measurability as well as the
way they are understood by those
Project Objectives
involved with the project. A key
question posed to the Oxfam GB and AF
1. Develop and increase interaction and linkages with
staff during the consultative workshop
women in target communities, local government
was whether they thought the goal was
institutions and civil society organizations to create a
attainable and how long might it take to
more informed and enabling environment for women
get there. Barring a few exceptions,
and to ensure their equal status in socio-economic and
most participants said the goal provided
politico-legal spheres of life.
a long-term vision and direction and
might take long years beyond the
2. Strengthen knowledge capacity of women, including
project duration to achieve. This,
elected representatives, to influence decision-making
however, amounts to confusing vision
process in local councils and institutions concerned on
with a goal, the latter being
womens political and economic rights and; increase
understood as signifying a longer-term
networking among key stakeholders through dialogue,
but achievable target. The very idea of
consensus-building meetings and informationdissemination.
having a goal for a project is to
synergize various sets of activities and
3. Facilitate and promote women in leadership roles in
underlying objectives toward a greater
target communities through skill building and
change. Whether the role of certain
awareness-raising and; foster linkages between
groups of women in governance has
community women groups/leaders and women elected
been strengthened and whether this has
representatives to ensure political and economic rights
resulted in better accountability and
for the poor women.
pro-poor development is something that
can be measured and should not be
4. Develop innovative media and communication
brushed aside merely as an ideal or a
strategies and undertake special advocacy
vision. Regrettably, the baseline study
interventions for dissemination of the best practices to
did not provide data on the phenomena
advocate and influence public policy and practice on
such as womens existing role in
womens crucial issues, particularly their political and
governance. Oxfam GB or the
economic rights.
implementing partner do not seem to be
using any operational definitions for
terms, such as marginalized women,
poor and empowerment. Unless these terms are operationalized and discussed with

intellectual rigour, it becomes hard to measure impact and broad changes resulting
from the project.
Participants in focus groups, which comprised of CACs and WLGs office bearers from all
target districts, understood the project as essentially aimed at increasing womens
political participation and the role in decision making. Enhancing womens leadership
roles and capacity for leadership also got mentioned a few times. All these relate to
project objectives 1 through 3. The participants did not seem aware of the project goal
specifically or the 4th objective dealing with developing media and communication
strategies for advocacy. Focus group discussions revealed that many WLG and CAC
representatives perceive civil registration as an objective whereas on project design it
comes across more as a means to an end, which is presumably enhancing womens role
in decision making and leadership positions. However, this is not discrediting some
excellent work done in most districts by way of civil registration. As we discuss shortly,
formation of national identity cards in significant numbers can be seen as one major
achievement to date. In fact, the reason tangible progress has been achieved on this
account may well have to do with the fact that WLG and CAC representatives consider it
to be a project objective in itself. By contrast, no advocacy or media strategy is in
place, which could at least partially be attributed to a lack of appreciation of the
corresponding objective (See objective 4, Box 1 above).
Within the definitional limitations mentioned earlier, the present section attempts to
shed light on signs of early impact, focusing in particular on: changes in womens role
in governance, reforms in laws, policies and institutional practices, and broad social and
political consequences that can be attributed to the project. Potentially far-reaching
results under the project objectives where evident are also discussed inasmuch as they
are likely to contribute to the project goal in coming years.

2.1.1 Womens Role in Accountability and Governance

The local government system with 30% reserved seats for women, and 5% for religious
minorities and peasants and workers at district and sub-district levels, allowed a
strategic entry point to strengthen the role of women in governance. The project sought
to make use of that opportunity by making a sizable number of the then elected
representatives a part of women leader groups (WLGs). Close to 37% respondents in
the sample survey reported that they had been a councilor before the local government
got dissolved in 2009. Over 90% of them said they had been a member of a monitoring
committee, an oversight mechanism within the LG system that made local bureaucracy
accountable to elected representatives. In the absence of elected representative bodies
at the local level, the role of these women in accountability and governance i.e.
management of resources and exercise of political authority has remained weak. The
LG system also had provisions for ordinary citizens, including women, to hold elected
representatives and government officials accountable by demanding information on
resource allocation and decision-making-another mechanism at the local level, which
remains unavailable.
Against this backdrop, it might be pertinent to ask if the project could capitalize on the
presence of ex-councilors within the folds of WLGs if the system got revived. Data in
this regard provides mixed indications. Asked if they intended to run for a public office
in future, only 44% of all respondents in the sample survey said yes. An equal
percentage comprised of those who said no and another 11% said they were not

sure. The percentage of those saying they intended to run for office was particularly
low among the youngest age cohort of women leaders i.e. 18-24 years (See Graph 1).
Positively, a majority of ex-councilors (76%) said they did intend to run for office.
However, it is significant to note that a noticeable 15.2% among them said no and
another 8.7% said they could not say. Thus, in the run-up to the next local body
elections, the project has an opportunity to work toward effecting an impact on
womens role in accountability and governance but that would require work not only in
preparing these women to step back into the local political arena but also to strengthen
their capacities, which we discuss separately in this chapter.
Graph 1: Intention to Run for Public Office among Women Leaders (Sample Survey)
Graph 1:Do you intend to run for
public office in future? (Sample
Survey)

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
18 to 24

Yes

35 to 39

40 to 44

No

55 and
Above

Cannot say

Table 1: Intention to Run for Public Office across Clusters (Sample Survey)
Do you intend to run for public office?
Cluster

Yes
CENTRAL PUNJAB
KHYBER PAKHTUN
KHWA
LOWER SINDH
SOUTHERN
PUNJAB
UPPER PUNJAB
CENTRAL-UPPER
SINDH

Total

No

Cannot say

Total

42.9%

37.1%

20.0%

100%

46.2%

38.5%

15.4%

100%

62.5%

37.5%

43.7%

43.7%

12.7%

100%

30.4%

52.2%

17.4%

100%

47.4%

52.6%

44.4%

44.4%

100%

100%
11.3%

100%

While the system of elected representative at the local level might be in limbo
constraining womens role in accountability and governance, it has to be noted that the
country has democratic government in place at provincial and federal level. Two
important accountability mechanisms available at those levels are the parliamentary
committee system and the right to freedom of information, which is now a substantive
part of the Constitution of Pakistan5. There is no evidence of the project having
5

th

Article 19A, Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan as amended by the 18 Amendment.

strengthened womens role in accountability and government oversight through these

channels. The project does not seem to have made any contribution to budgetary
allocation for women or initiation of any major pro-poor or pro-women development
work. Admittedly there are small-scale changes in the functioning of some government
departments and institutions, which are discussed under the head on institutional
practices. Advocacy work is also geared toward supporting the governments Gender
Reforms Action Plan (GRAP), an initiative to strengthen womens role in public offices
and bureaucracy but no impact is visible as yet.
To influence accountability, the starting point has to be a recognition and understanding
of the inbuilt spaces and legally protected mechanisms for elected representatives, civil
society and ordinary citizens to step forward and hold the government accountable.
These spaces or entry points include the Parliamentary Committee System and Audit
Commissions, the Courts, Ombudsman and other legal bodies, the Electorate, and last
but not least citizens associations, watch dogs and the media. We have set these out
diagrammatically as a wheel with the hub and the checking bodies as the rim.
Legislature
Audit
Commissions
Committees

Public
Opinion

Legal Bodies
Ombudsmen
Courts

Executive

Media
Organisied
Publics

Public Saftey
Commissions

Electorate

With regard to RHVs role in terms of utilizing these spaces for strengthening womens
role in accountability, one arena where an indirect difference has been made is that of
the electorate, as a sizable number of women have been registered as voters. If these
do exercise the right to vote to hold the incumbent representatives accountable, this
could be an indication of RHV having made an impact come next general elections.
One outcome of RHV, which can pave the way for a stronger role by women in
accountability and governance, is that it has brought together women from different
political parties together on one platform. Mutual trust and cordiality was evident in
most FGDs held as part of the evaluation. They have already worked together resolving
some issues at the local level. On many womens rights issues, they think alike despite
difference in ideological leanings. Whether this minimum consensus on womens rights
can be scaled up will require advocacy efforts with political leadership at provincial and
national leadership.

2.1.2 Changes in Laws and Policies

Interconnected with the issue of womens role in accountability and governance is the
entire domain of law and policy-making. The stronger that role, the larger is the
possibility of legal and policy environment turning favorable toward womens rights. As
mentioned earlier, the present government since coming into office in 2008 has
introduced some major legislation with potentially positive impact on protecting and
securing womens rights. Particularly noteworthy among recently introduced laws are
the Protection against Harassment at the Workplace Act, 2009 and the Domestic
Violence (Prevention and Protection) Bill 2010. Women rights organisations in Pakistan,
including the implementing partner, AF have long advocated for legal protection for
women at both the workplace and the so-called private sphere of the family. While no
lobbying campaign was undertaken for the passage of either of these laws under RHV,
it has to be admitted that the implementing partner, long before the inception of the
present project, had been a part of civil society campaigns for such legislation.
Additionally, some creditable work has been done in terms of supporting the
implementation of the Harassment Act, which gets discussed under changes in
institutional practices.

FGDs across seven clusters revealed that WLG and CAC representatives do not have
specific lobbying agendas to effect a change in laws and policies at the provincial and
federal level, lobbying being defined as a subset of advocacy that aims at influencing
laws and public policy. This is worrisome given the fact that Pakistan still has a number
of discriminatory provisions and laws on the statute books. These include provisions
related to womens evidence and reproductive rights in the Pakistan Penal Code, the
law of inheritance and the law dealing with minimum age at marriage, to mention a
few. The signs of the project making a broad impact on laws with regard to womens
rights remain weak in the absence of lobbying agendas or plans. This weakness is
accentuated when seen in the context of the survey findings regarding the awareness of
discriminatory laws among women leaders.
While majority of respondents (75.6%) agreed with the statement that Pakistan had
laws that discriminated against women, a notable 13.6% disagreed and close to11%
said they did not know. The percentage of those saying they agreed ranged from an
impressive 93.5% in Upper Punjab to just 55.6% in KP Province.

10

Table 2: Perception about the Existence of Discriminatory Laws among Women Leaders by
Clusters (Sample Survey)
Do you think there are laws in Pakistan
that discrimination against women?
Cluster

Yes
CENTRAL PUNJAB
KHYBER PAKHTUN
KHWA
LOWER SINDH
SOUTHERN
PUNJAB
UPPER PUNJAB
CENTRAL-UPPER
SINDH

Total

No

Do not know

Total

71.4%

22.9%

5.7%

100%

55.6%

29.6%

14.8%

100%

62.5%

9.4%

28.1%

100%

85.9%

7.0%

7.0%

100%

93.5%

6.5%

64.1%

17.9%

17.9%

100%

75.6%

13.6%

10.8%

100%

100%

Of those who said laws did discriminate against women, only 25% could correctly name
a discriminatory law. 15% gave wrong answers and majority (60%) said they could not
recall the name. Southern Punjab had the highest percentage i.e. 58% followed by
Central Punjab 28% and Lower Sindh 24% who correctly named a discriminatory law.
Of those who said laws did discriminate against women, housewives, government
servant and government school teachers had very high percentages of those giving a
wrong answer compared to other occupational categories.
When asked if they thought all discriminatory laws should be repealed, majority (87%)
of those who knew about the existence of discriminatory laws agreed. Southern Punjab
at 93% had the highest percentage of respondents agreeing with the statement and KP
the lowest at 63%. Within Punjab, Central Punjab at 80% lagged behind others in
endorsing the need for repealing discriminatory laws. These statistics point to the need
for some nuanced ground work to be done in terms of increasing awareness about
discriminatory laws and universalizing the demand for the repeal or reforms if the
project is to make an impact on the legal environment during the remaining course of
the project.

2.1.3 Changes in Institutional Practices

FGDs in seven clusters and project documentation reveal a number of examples with
regard to changes in institutional and administrative practices of various government
departments at the district and sub-district level. In the absence of elected bodies at
the local level, these changes have been a result of direct engagement on the part of
WLG and CAC members as individuals and as groups with government officials, line
agencies and specialized departments. Whether these changes can be replicated and
sustained will depend on a number of factors, such as continued engagement with
relevant bodies, advocacy with provincial governments and political leadership, and so
on. We take these issues up in greater detail under subsequent heads.
In an excellent display of openness to seizing new opportunities, the RHV has taken up
the implementation of the Protection from Harassment at Workplace Bill 2010 as an
advocacy and campaigning agenda. The impact in most districts has so far been in the

11

form of increased awareness of the issue of sexual harassment but most WLG and CAC
representatives quoted that as a major achievement. The very fact that government
officials have agreed to put up notices and other informational material (provided by AF
and partners) in their offices is a sign of some headway being made, said a participant
in the Upper Punjab FGD. WLG General Secretary from Abbotabad, KP cluster, said
women from remote areas were beginning to approach the group to discuss cases of
harassment, knowing that a relevant law was in place now. From District Haripur in the
same cluster, the CAC coordinator told the story of a woman college teacher who had
been harassed by a senior colleague. We took up the case with the inquiry committee
constituted under the Harassment Bill in that college and the accused was removed
from the post. In District Sialkot, Central Punjab, the WLG organised a seminar at the
District Bar Association, which was quoted as an achievement because it was for the
first time that ordinary women were able to make inroads into a highly influential civil
society forum. In district Layyah in Southern Punjab, WLG and CAC actually managed
to get the District Bar Association to form an inquiry committee as envisaged under the
law. In district Sibi, Balochistan, the CAC had reportedly got assurance from the
District Coordination Officer (DCO) with regard to the implementation of the Bill and as
a first step he had fixed a day to hear womens complaints.
An initial sign of impact with regard to the implementation of the Protection against
Harassment Bill is the fact that around 73% women leaders said they knew of the law.
District Hyderabad in lower Sindh, Gujrat in Central Punjab and Bhawalpur in Southern
Punjab had 100% respondents saying they were aware of it. KP province at 34.6%
again lagged far behind other clusters. Awareness was also found to be higher among
women leaders with higher levels of education than the less educated ones and those
who were also members of the CAC in their district compared to non-CAC women
leaders.
In what might be indicative of the confidence of women leaders in their groups ability
to make a change, Upper Punjab and Central Punjab had relatively higher percentages
of those saying they were optimistic to a great extent that the law could be
implemented in their district. The fact that overall just over 19% respondents were
optimistic to a great extent about the possibility of the law being fully implemented
indicates the need for translating awareness into positive action and ultimately a
change in institutional practices.

Table 3: Implementation of Protection against Harassment at Workplace Bill 2010:

Perceptions by Clusters (Sample Survey)
How optimistic are you that the law can be fully
implemented in your district?

Cluster
CENTRAL PUNJAB

To a great
extent

To some
extent

33.3%

54.2%

8.3%

77.8%

22.2%

KHYBER PAKHTUN
KHWA

Not at all

Cannot say
4.2%

Total
100%
100%

LOWER SINDH

16.7%

61.1%

16.7%

5.6%

100%

SOUTHERN
PUNJAB

10.7%

73.2%

12.5%

3.6%

100%

12

Total

UPPER PUNJAB

37.8%

35.1%

24.3%

2.7%

100%

CENTRAL-UPPER
SINDH

7.7%

42.3%

3.8%

46.2%

100%

19.4%

56.5%

14.1%

10.0%

100%

In other areas, as part of civil registration campaigns, there has been some impact on
the responsiveness of the National Data Registration Authority (NADRA). Friday has
been designated as an exclusive day for woman to visit the static centres for getting
National Identity Cards (NICs) made or replaced. Districts where FGD participants made
this claim were Layyah in Southern Punjab, Gujranawala in Central Punjab, Jafarabad in
Balochistan and Sukkur in Central-Upper Sindh. A government official interviewed in
Sukkur, however, maintained it was the governments own initiative being implemented
across the country. Regardless of whether it was the direct result of WLG and CAC
campaigning, the decision has immensely helped a large number of women in obtaining
the ID cards. In District Chakwal, a member of the WLG group volunteered with NADRA
to help them with womens registration. Impressed with her work, the department
eventually hired her as an employee. A NADRA official from the remote Rahim Yar Khan
District of Southern Punjab said interaction with AF and partners has allowed me to
look at womens issues from a fresh perspective. In several districts, women leaders
have gained access to NADRAs official set up-static and mobile units-by helping them
out with registering women, especially where the department does not have adequate
female staff.
In Punjab province, some districts have been successful in getting women represented
on Zakat Committees at the union council level, which could lead to transparency in
disbursement of cash to the needy women. In District Hafizabad, Central Punjab, WLG
members went as far as approaching the district court when they heard about
irregularities and exclusion of women in the appointment of committee members. The
court ruled in favour of the group staying the functioning of the committee. The district
now has 15 Zakat Committees headed by women. Similarly, in District Chakwal, the
WLG succeeded in getting two positions created for women in Darul Aman, a
government shelter house for women victims of violence and abuse.

2.1.4 Womens Status in Socio-Economic and Politico-Legal Spheres

It may be premature to assess changes in womens status in society just half way
through the project. However, there are some stories of individual lives being
transformed through the intervention of women leaders and their CAC counterparts.
Most such accounts speak of contributions from RHV partners which, go well beyond the
project scope and can be taken as an indication of their leadership qualities and
courage. This can be seen at least partially as a result of the project in the light of the
fact that some WLG general secretaries acknowledged the contribution that RHV had
made to their ability to lead from the front.
For example, in District Naseerabad, Balochistan, the CAC and WLG highlighted an
incident where a woman was sexually abused by an influential landlord. The local
police hushed up the case initially but we got the story published in newspapers, said
the CAC Coordinator. The Balochistan High Court took suo motto notice and the culprit
went on trial. In Gujranwala, Central Punjab, WLG General Secretary, who also

13

happens to be a Population Welfare Officer prevented the shifting of a family planning

facility (falahi markaz) to another location as this would have deprived local women of a
much-needed service. To paraphrase her account: We actually besieged the facility
and physically stopped government officers from removing furniture and paraphernalia.
Our perseverance made them back off.
In District Bhakkar, South Punjab, RHV partners protected a young girl who was about
to be married off as part of a dispute settlement by lodging an FIR (First Investigation
Report) with the local police. In some districts of Southern Punjab and Lower Sindh,
WLG members as lawyers have reportedly provided free legal advice to victims of
violence and abuse. Inspiring as they are, these stories also bring into relief the need
for institutionalizing support and protection mechanisms for women and creating longlasting linkages. This could, for instance, take the form of WLGs being linked up with
legal aid organisations or guidelines developed for volunteers to provide support to
victims of violence.
As discussed earlier, civil registration is a worthwhile social investment since it might
open up new opportunities for employment and mobility and help resolve legal issues.
Since ID cards is a requirement for getting support under the Benazir Income Support
Programme (BISP), CAC and WLG leaders have had the task of demand generation cut
in many areas. At the same time, those women who obtained CNICs through support
provided by RHV partners are reaping the benefits under the BISP. The same holds true
for Watan Cards being issued to flood affected people to identify those who qualify for
compensation from the government. In some districts, such as Mianwali in Southern
Punjab, women leaders and CACs have actively helped women acquire Watan Cards.
Elsewhere, for example in district Bhakkar in the same cluster and in Nowshera, KP,
RHV partners have helped women obtain duplicates of civil documents lost in the
floods, contributing to the process of early recovery.

2.1.5 Changes in Women Leaders Capacities and Knowledge

Asked what difference the project had made to their capacities to work as activists, a
number of WLG office-bearers said it had increased their self-confidence and ability to
articulate issues. There was a time I felt terribly scared to speak on a forum like this,
said the WLG general secretary from Abbotabad. Interaction with AF and participation
in groups activities has made me much more confident. Another WLG representative
from the remote Balochistan district of Jaffarabad said she was probably the first
woman in her area to go and meet a senior government official on my own. Initially, I
would be accompanied by my brother when I went to government offices, she added,
now I have the confidence to go interact with government officers alone.
One sign of increased confidence and capacity for collective action among women
leaders is the role many of them played in the aftermath of 2010 floods. For example,
WLG members in District Nowshera-which is a very conservative region-helped rescue
stranded women and children and provided medical aid to flood victims. A CAC member
who lost her only daughter to the gushing waters went door to door to collect funds for
those affected by the flood. Remarkably, WLG and CAC members in districts which
were not affected by floods, for example, Sialkot and Gujranawala in Central Punjab,
collected donations and sent them over to the WLG in Nowshera. Elsewhere, women
have held press conferences and rallies, in regions where such activities by women
were rarely heard of a few years back.

14

Such examples, remarkable as they are, cannot be taken as a sign of all WLG members
having transformed into confident activists. As we discuss later on in the report, active
participation in the project and WLG activities has remained confined to a limited
number of members. Most WLG and CAC office-bearers in FGDs were candid enough to
admit it themselves.
Since the project objective (objective 2) dealing with knowledge and capacities
specifically mentioned the ability to influence decision-making vis--vis womens
economic and political rights, WLG representatives were asked a few questions as proxy
indicators of their relevant knowledge. Some 37.3% respondents had not heard of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW),
with noticeable variations across clusters and a few other variables. District Hyderabad
in Lower Sindh and District Gujranwala in Central Punjab had 100% respondents saying
they had heard of CEDAW. Bhawalpur at 91% and D.G Khan at around 88% also had
large percentages within their districts of those saying they had heard of CEDAW.
Within age groups, those in mid to late 30s (35-39) and early 40s had higher
percentages of respondents saying they had heard of the convention compared to other
age cohorts. It might be a source of concern that among the youngest age cohort only
half the respondents said they had heard of CEDAW. Across age cohorts, survey
findings reveal a greater involvement and relevant knowledge among women leaders in
late 30s to early 40s compared to younger and older age groups.
Graph 2: Awareness of CEDAW among Women Leaders across Clusters (Sample Survey)
Have you heard of CEDAW?

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Central
Punjab

Khber
Pakhtun
Khwa

Yes

Lower
Sindh

Southern
Punjab

Upper
Punjab

Upper
Sindh

No

15

Table 4: Awareness of CEDAW among Women Leaders by Age Groups (Sample Survey)
Have you heard about
CEDAW?
Age Categories

Total

Yes

No

18 to 24

50.0%

50.0%

Total
100%

25 to 29

58.8%

41.2%

100%

30 to 34

56.5%

43.5%

100%

35 to 39

72.2%

27.8%

100%

40 to 44

70.7%

29.3%

100%

45 to 49

56.8%

43.2%

100%

50 to 54

63.6%

36.4%

100%

55 and
Above

71.4%

28.6%

100%

62.6%

37.4%

100%

Interestingly, there was a greater percentage among ex-councilors (70%) of those who
said they had heard of the convention compared to those WLG members who had never
been a councilor (59%)6. Also WLG members who also had the membership of the CAC
in their district had a significantly higher percentage (73%) of respondents saying they
had heard of the convention compared to non-CAC women (52%)7. The awareness of
the convention was also found to be positively linked with the members educational
level. Within ex-councilors, those who had been elected at district level had a higher
percentage (46%) compared to corresponding figures for those who had been
councilors at tehsil (22%) and union council level (33%).
Asked how familiar they were with the Fundamental Rights in the Constitution of
Pakistan, only 17.8% women leaders said to a great extent. Districts Hyderabad in
Sindh at 71.4% and Gujranwala at 50%had comparatively larger percentages of
respondents saying they were familiar with these rights to a great extent. Across
clusters, yet again, KP has the smallest percentage and Central Punjab the highest
followed by lower Sindh and Southern Punjab.

Among ex-councilors, those who had been elected at the district level had a higher percentage of women saying
they had heard of CEDAW compared to tehsil and union council elected representatives.
7

The fact that CAC members may be more aware of legal and womens rights issues can also be
gauged from the fact that they had larger percentage 88.4 percent of respondents saying they
thought the legal age at marriage for girls should be no less than 18 years compared to nonmembers.

16

Graph 3: Familiarity with Fundamental Rights among Women Leaders (Sample Survey)
How familar would you say you are
with the Fundamental Rights given in
Constitution of Pakistan?
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
To a great
extent

To some
extent

Not at all

Cannot say

The youngest age quintile had the highest percentage of those saying they were not
familiar with fundamental rights at all. Those in early 40s had a greater proportion of
respondents saying they were familiar with fundamental rights to a great extent
compared to other age groups.

2.2 Relevance
The project was reasonably relevant to both supply and demand side of governance at
the time of the inception in that it sought to give a collective platform to women in
communities and targeted women elected representatives in local bodies as WLG
members and participants in capacity building initiatives. The discontinuation of the
local government system has severely restricted the projects ability to improve
womens role in accountability at the local level since many spaces for engaging with
elected representatives at the local level are not available. In many instances, excouncilors who are a part of WLGs, have become disgruntled and dormant. This view
was shared by FGD participants in most clusters. However, some disagreed, saying the
RHV had actually provided a platform to erstwhile elected representatives after the
dissolution of local bodies. AF staff members are of the view that objective 2, which
expressly sought to increase elected representatives capacity to influence decisionmaking in local councils is no longer relevant8.
The idea of having women come together on a common platform for collective action
was, according to most WLG and CAC representatives, relevant to local needs for
demand articulation and citizens oversight of the government. To quote CAC
Coordinator from district Gujrat, Prior to RHV we would often discuss the need for
raising womens voice as they make up 50% of the population and have little say in
public decision-making.

The federal government has repeatedly claimed that it is committed to holding local government elections but no
date has been given yet.

17

Involving men in the project through CACs was also a sensible idea within the cultural
contexts where women have limited mobility. Sizable sections of population in some
project districts still do not approve of their presence in the public domain. Women-only
projects, especially those dealing with legal and political rights, are sometimes
perceived as a threat to religious and tribal values and fail to make much headway in
rural areas. Involvement of CACs also had the added advantage of capitalizing on the
work that had already been done by the implementing partner.
Projects emphasis on engaging with relevant government departments and getting
existing laws implemented, for example, Protection against Harassment at Workplace
Bill, also addresses the need for constructive activism that seeks to effect changes
through available procedures rather than taking confrontational positions. The supply
side of governance, however, would have been addressed better had the project also
sought to build the capacity of local bureaucracies for addressing womens rights.
Some contextual realities that could have been taken into account while designing the
project and planning activities out relate to the energy crisis in Pakistan, climate change
and extreme events. There is no evidence of OGB having made any efforts to
complement RHV through its Disaster Preparedness and Climate Change Programme.
WLGs and CACs have, on their own initiative, provided rescue and relief services
voluntarily in the aftermath of the 2010 floods. They could have been helped a lot in
their efforts if some linkages had been there with OGB partners which have capacity
and experience in disaster management.

2.3 Equity
In project areas with diverse ethnic population, the project has been fairly successful in
involving different ethnic groups. For example, Central-Upper Sindh, a region where
majority is Sindhi speaking, has significant percentages of minority ethnic groups
among WLG members. These include 20.5% Urdu-speakers, 12.8% Seraiki speakers,
and 10.3 Punjabi-speakers. Lower Sindh again has representation of all ethnic groups in
the region, including around 23 percent Urdu-speakers, are percentage, which is more
or less proportionate to their actual numbers in the overall population. Hyderabad, the
largest district in the cluster, has a Sindhi speaking woman as CAC Coordinator and an
Urdu-speaker as WLG general secretary-an arrangement which they both agree has
helped bridge ethnic divide among local activists. The pattern is remarkable all the
more as CAC and WLG representatives in the FGDs strongly endorsed the need for
including all ethnic groups as a means to undercut vested political interests based on
language and ethnic affiliations.

18

Table 5: Ethnic Composition of WLGs by Clusters (Sample Survey)

Cluster

Mother Tongue
Balochi

CENTRAL
PUNJAB

Punjabi

70.4%

UPPER
PUNJAB

CENTRALUPPER SINDH

Total
.8%

4.3%

8.4%
.4%

74.3%

18.8%

21.1%

80.4%

10.3%

35.2%

29.6%

3.2%

Seraiki

6.3%

Sindhi

59.4%

Urdu

SOUTHERN
PUNJAB

2.9%

Pushto

Total

LOWER
SINDH

5.1%

Hindko
Lasi

KHYBER
PAKHTUN
KHWA

22.9%
100%

100%

60.6%

12.8%

20.0%

51.3%

15.6%

15.6%

18.3%

15.2%

20.5%

16.4%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

The situation, by contrast, is not all that promising when it comes to religious
minorities. Only 1% respondents in the sample survey stated their religion as other
than Islam. Sindh, which has the largest proportion of minority population among all
four provinces, has no non-Muslim respondent. FGDs revealed that this is unlikely to be
a result of any sampling error as minority members in WLGs are few and far between.
At the time of the group formation, the implementing partner, gave some guidelines
with regard to occupational categories. However, no mention was made of the need for
including religious minorities in the WLGs. Other excluded groups include Afghan
refugees in the KP province and women with physical disabilities in all clusters.
Admittedly, this does not seem to be a result of any bias on the part of AF or WLG and
CAC office-bearers. However, by not making conscious efforts to include these groups
as WLG members, the project has fallen short of addressing the project goal, which
expressly mentions marginalized women. Project activities are not geared toward
addressing the needs of religious minorities, refugees and those with mental and
physical disabilities.
The way project is designed, a lot of networking, advocacy and campaign work, goes on
at district headquarters as a result of which women from far-flung areas are not able to
participate actively; there are no provisions for reimbursing their travel expenses in
connection with such activities. In some districts, such as Dadu and Thatta in Sindh and
Jafarabad in Balochistan, there were some union councils, which did not have any
representation from far-flung union councils to begin with. In most others, members
were enlisted from all parts of the district. However, their participation has remained
weak compared to the members residing in or around district headquarters.

2.4 Effectiveness
As discussed under the section on impact, the project has had no impact on law and
public policy at provincial and federal levels. This appears to be linked with a lack of
vertical linkages that could have allowed aggregation of community and activists
demands at the grassroots level. The AF staffs role is limited to management,
monitoring and some input in capacity building at the district level. The project

19

approach and activities do not seem to be utilizing channels for accountability and
oversight at the higher levels of governance, such as parliamentary committees and the
freedom of information provisions protected under federal and provincial laws.
At the district level, much creditable work has been done by way of influencing
administrative and institutional practices in some departments. However, the emphasis
seems to be more on undertaking activities and meeting targets set by the AF rather
than achieving specific advocacy objectives through proper planning. The projects
wider impact on governance and public policy could increase significantly if advocacy at
the grassroots level had specific objectives articulated as desired changes in systems
and practices, and if community demands and salient legal and policy issues related to
womens rights were taken up as advocacy and lobbying agendas at provincial and
federal levels. The project does not seem to be based on a nuanced understanding of
advocacy and lobbying as inter-related but separate components of social mobilization.
To impact policies, systems and institutional practices, it is also helpful to view
awareness raising/community mobilization, advocacy and lobbying on a continuum. The
repeal of discriminatory laws against women-a lobbying agenda-could be helped if it
was backed by adequate awareness of such laws and demand for repeal among
communities (community mobilization) and approval of that demand by opinion-makers
and political leadership (advocacy).
An example of the disconnect between local womens perceptions and the implementing
partners lobbying agenda is that just 29% of respondents in the sample survey said
they would like next local body election to be held on political party basis. Majority
(65.3%) said the elections should be held on non-party basis. This contrasts with the
official AF position that the elections should be held on party-basis. The discrepancy is
more acute in the light of the fact that in many districts WLG and CAC members have
actually participated in AF rallies calling for the restoration of the local bodies.
On the positive side, the projects strategy to include female CAC members in WLGs
and involving male CAC members has proved to be advantageous. Sample survey
reveals that CAC members are ahead of others in terms of knowledge about certain
rights issues as well as participation in RHV activities9. Male involvement has facilitated
access to government officials and has been instrumental in organizing events at the
district level level. However, one drawback is that CAC coordinators and members have
previously been involved in a funded project with AF. They have expectations about
monetary and logistical support influenced by their past experience.
Within WLGs, the strategy of having a mixed group comprising members from different
occupations has also supported project objectives. For example, government employees
as members of women groups have reportedly helped resolve womens issues and
catalyzed some administrative changes in local government departments. However, a
number of important issues were not effectively addressed and strategized during the
inception phase. The formation of WLGs was not informed by a thorough understanding
of marginalization, resulting in the inadvertent exclusion of religious minorities and the
9

KP and Central Punjab cluster which seem to be lagging behind other clusters in terms of
participations and members awareness of key rights issues have the lowest percentages of women
leaders who also have CAC membership. Overall, some 49% respondents said they were CAC
members. Percentages for Central Punjab and KP are 31.4% and 34.6% respectively.
20

disabled. Similarly, no adequate planning was done to ensure continued and sustained
participation of all and not just a few active members, residing in urban areas.
Project goal and objectives were not clearly communicated to partners at the grassroots
level. As a result, there is a tendency to equate and conflate awareness-raising and
advocacy activities as objectives rather than means to a broader end.

2.5 Efficiency
Project results that are already evident, such as, civil registration in large numbers,
partial implementation of the Protection against Harassment at Workplace Bill, inclusion
of women in union council Zakat committees, resolution of domestic issues and help
provided to victims of violence, have been helped by voluntary contribution of time and
resources by women leaders and CAC members. On project budget, CAC and WLGs
receive reimbursements for planned activities, including issue sensitization and
awareness raising meetings, civil registration and advocacy campaigns, and special
activities. There was a consensus among CAC coordinators and WLG representatives in
every district that the amount was not adequate to cover the expenses. Lack of
participation by all WLG members in meetings and advocacy events and campaigns was
also linked with the fact that there is no provision for travel allowance for them to
participate in these activities.
Asked if they knew about the kind of budget that would be available right from the
beginning, many participants replied in affirmative, but added that they were given an
assurance that the amounts would be revised upwards under some heads. This is what
actually happened when the budget for civil registration campaigns was increased by
25%. Some FGD participants also said they agreed to be a part of the project despite
low activity budget because it was better than doing nothing. RHV implementation
thus seems to have an inbuilt tension between voluntary activism and paid activities.
The available budget for the latter under RHV is often compared with what other NGOs
pay, leading to resentment among some office-bearers. While it might be easier to
state that the project has been cost effective inasmuch as activities are being
undertaken on a shoestring budget, that would amount to oversimplifying complex
realities.
Operational costs (13%) and personnel costs (39%) together make up 53% of the total
budget. While the amounts under these heads are fairly reasonable given the existing
inflation rates and in line with salaries offered by national NGOs, this leaves fairly little
for activities on the ground. The issue is problematic all the more because the project
seems to be understaffed. Conducting advocacy and lobbying at provincial levels,
providing additional technical support to WLGs and CACs, and improving monitoring and
reporting, all call for additional programme staff.
In terms of returns on investments, civil registration campaigns and improvements in
working environment for women as a result of implementation of the Harassment Bill,
can be expected to pay significant social dividends by opening up new opportunities for
women in social and political spheres. Other types of work, such as capacity building,
do not appear to be cost-effective for the following reasons: Not all WLG members have
had a chance to participate in trainings and there is no plan in place to replicate the
trainings through master trainers; no refresher courses or follow-up have been included
in capacity building activities; and no training manuals or participants workbooks have
been prepared, which could have institutionalized training modules to some extent.

21

Similarly, the biannual newsletter Tehreek,

Tehreek has not reached some 36% of WLG
members. Most government officials interviewed as part of data collection also had not
seen it. FGD participants in Lower Sindh also pointed out the fact that such material
should be published in the local language to increase outreach. Others were not happy
with the frequency, saying a few pages twice a year are not adequate for their
information needs.
Graph 4: Readership of the RHV Newsletter among WLG Members (Sample Survey)
Have you seen the newsletter Tehreek?
Tehreek

36%
64%

Yes

No

On the part of OGB, there has been a lack of planning on creating linkages with the We
Can Campaign. In some districts WLG and CAC office-bearers
office bearers are of the view that
activities are being duplicated. In the light of the fact that RHV does not have provisions
for offices at district level-something
something cited as a maj
major
or constraint by all FGD participantsparticipants
OGB could have planned to share offices
office between We Can and RHV partners where
feasible.

2.6 Sustainability::
The issue of sustainability is intimately connected with the preceding discussion on
impact, relevance, equity, effectiveness and efficiency. For instance, an enabling legal
and policy environment at provincial and federal level would help sustain positive
institutional
ional changes that come about at local level. To give a concrete example, it
might not be enough for project to demonstrate that partners have established good
rapport with local police administration and thereby facilitated protection to victims of
violence and abuse. The results might not last if the supportive officials get transferred
transferredwhich happens all the time. To sustain the changes, more systematic advocacy will be
required with provincial police departments so that changes are institutionalized.
Similarly, focusing on social themes relevant to contemporary Pakistan (for example,
disaster management, alternative energy, peace and tolerance) could open up new
venues of funding for local NGOs and CBOs, which have representation on WLGs and
CACs.
In the FGDs, opinion was divided on whether the WLGs and the kind of activities and
campaigns they are undertaking will last beyond the project duration. Citing CACs as an
example, some participants said, we continued working even after the official funding
came to an end. CAC Coordinator from Multan was of the view that local people have
to continue working for their own benefit regardless of whether funding continues or
not. Another opinion was that local volunteers could not just abandon the work
wo
initiated under RHV if funding dried up because that would
would put our reputation at

22

stake. People, especially women, now have hopes and expectations in us so we have
to sustain our work to the extent possible.
However, not all participants were as sanguine. Some said the kind of activities that
were being carried out under RHV, civil registration, for example, require money. To
quote one participant, What we are getting now does not amount to much but it at
least covers our bare minimum operational expenses. Some were of the view that WLG
and CAC members would continue to undertake voluntary work but not in a planned or
systematic manner.
Asked to give recommendations for making projects results sustainable, FGD
participants suggested a wider coverage of training programme so that members have
the capacity to initiate voluntary programmes. Representatives from a number of
districts were of the opinion that provision for a common meeting place or an office for
WLGs and CACs would enable a stronger sense of identity and professionalism.
Realistically speaking, it would be naive to expect WLGs and CACs to mature into selfsustaining bodies without putting in place an elaborate sustainability plan. Such a plan
needs to identify strategic alliances both vertically and horizontally i.e. between
volunteers, AF and partners at provincial and national levels as well as with potential
allies, such as District and Teshil Bar Associations at grassroots levels. Some low-cost
but critical inputs, such as linking the WLGs up with a legal aid centre would not only
meet a very strong demand by women but also add to the groups prestige and value.
With regard to other areas, such as civil registration and advocacy for implementation
of laws, the sustainability plan would need to shift the focus toward demand generation
rather than open-ended interventions and facilitation provided by WLGs and CACs to
communities.

2.7 Replicability
The projects approach of including men in campaigning and advocating for womens
rights has proved useful for fellow women activists in navigating gender insensitive and
chauvinistic terrain of government departments and rural politics. The approach can be
replicated in sector-specific projects for demand articulation, such as those in education
and environment. Bringing women from different occupational backgrounds also allows
activists entry points for engaging with a range of actors, such as media, government
and the legal community. There is no reason why such modes of association cannot be
adopted in projects dealing with other issues. Similarly, the project has shown that it is
possible to get women politicians from across the political divide to have a common
stance on certain issues. Similar efforts at provincial and national levels could help with
advocacy and lobbying activities.
In terms of engagement with laws and public policy, it appears that the project has
reaped rewards where the focus has been on getting existing instruments implemented.
For example, some progress is evident in district government departments adopting
code of conduct with regard to sexual harassment as stipulated in the Protection
against Harassment Bill. While lobbying for new laws might be necessary, oftentimes it
might be more realistic to make the best use of laws and policies that are already in
place and which the governments cannot back off from that easily.

23

3.

Progress and Constraints against Targets

Cluster 1: Networking, lobbying, and advocacy with poor women activists

To begin with, the title raises some questions. Networking with women activists sounds
relatively simple but it is not clear what is meant by lobbying and advocacy with poor
women activists. As generally understood, advocacy refers to strategic use of
information and other persuasive means to influence decision-makers. And lobbying is a
narrower term, denoting efforts to bring about changes in laws. The title makes sense
to the extent that women activists are to be involved in advocacy and lobbying
activities. Discussions with WLG and CAC office-bearers and AF staff suggested there is
a lack of clarity on these concepts.
With regard to networking, the foremost issue is that of the composition and formation
of groups and subsequent participation by members. The projects monitoring
framework (the LFA), work plans and progress reports do not capture the inception
phase of networking. Consequently, the quality of group formation seems to have
escaped scrutiny. As mentioned under the section on equity, there are issues with the
representation of religious minorities and the disabled. While every district has a WLG
with 50 members on paper, not all of them can said to be functioning members. Asked
what proportion of members would they say are active, WLG and CAC office-bearers in
FGDs quoted figures that ranged from 60% to 80%.
With regard to lack of participation by some members, office-bearers cited difficulties in
reaching the venue for meetings and activities; lack of support from male family
members; and the discontinuation of the LG system, which had disheartened excouncilors. Non-availability of an office or a fixed venue for getting together was also
mentioned as a constraint by almost all district representatives. Office-bearers also
pointed out that they had not been allowed to replace inactive women leaders with
new members. On most accounts, having a mixed composition of WLGs in terms of
professional groups has facilitated access to government offices and media and other
sectors. However, WLG spokesperson in District Rawalpindi, suggested that working
women are not being able to give time to our activities because of their professional
responsibilities.
In the sample survey, 83% women leaders said they had participated in a meeting
organised by Aurat Foundation during the past two years. Across clusters, Lower Sindh
and Southern Punjab had the highest percentage of respondents saying they had
participated in a meeting and KP the lowest. Of those who said they had participated in
a meeting, close to 12% said they did not remember what issue had been discussed in
the meeting so even that figure (83%) has to be taken with a pinch of salt. Overall,
some 28% women leaders said they had never heard of the CAC. Keeping these
statistics in mind, it would be safe to say around 30% of existing members are inactive.

24

Graph 5: Participation in Meetings among WLG Members by Clusters (Sample Survey)

Have you participated in a meeting organised by
Aurat Foundation during the past two years?

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Yes
No

Across age categories, the youngest quintile has the highest percentage i.e. 36% who
have not participated in an AF meeting during the past 2 years compared with just
5.6% in the age group 35-39 years. Across occupational categories, lady health visitors
and lady health workers, housewives, home-based workers and government categories
had higher percentages, ranging from 30% to 43% who had not heard of the CAC in
their district. There was a higher percentage among ex-councilors (78.3%) who said
they were aware of CACs compared to the corresponding figure of 68.6% for those who
had never been a councilor.
In terms of quantitative targets, ISMs and awareness raising meetings (ARMs) have
been held for all 30 districts during 2009 and 2010. In qualitative terms, it has to be
pointed out that REFLECT approach, the methodology proposed in the original proposal,
was never used. Advocacy and campaign plans coming out of these meetings reflect
participants awareness of a range of social issues from poverty and unemployment to
education and legal aid. However, many of these plans appear to be talking about
service delivery and have very broad and unrealistic goals.
The RHV newsletter, which is listed under networking activities in the project work plan,
was seen by only 40% women leaders, with lowest figures for KP, Lower Sindh and
Central Punjab in the same order. There were fewer among the youngest age group
who said they had seen the newsletter compared to those in late 30s and early 40s.
Across occupational categories, Lady Health Workers (LHWs), housewives, homebased-workers and government school teachers had particularly low percentages of
those who said they had seen the newsletter.

25

Graph 6: RHV Newsletter Readership by Clusters (Sample Survey)

Have you seen the newsletter Tehreek?

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Central
Punjab

Khber
Pakhtun
Khwa

Lower
Sindh

Yes

Southern
Punjab

Upper
Punjab

Upper
Sindh

No

Positively, however, among those who had seen the newsletter, 59% respondents said
they found it very informative and another 34% said they found it informative. In
FGDs, most participants recommended that the frequency of publication be increased to
quarterly from the current biannually. In Lower Sindh, participants suggested that the
newsletter be published in Sindhi or bilingually to reach out to women in rural areas.

Cluster 2 Working with public institutions and decision-making forums,

including traditional structures.
Under cluster 2, the work carried out for civil registration by facilitating women to
access NADRAs static units and reaching out to them through the departments mobile
vans has been impressive. The figures on computerized ID cards, birth registration
certificates and domiciles issued through WLG and CACs efforts add up to the target of
75,000 mentioned in the RHV work plan for the first and second year of the project.
NADRA officials interviewed in District Sukkur and District Gujranwala appreciated AFs
role in facilitating women to access static and mobile units for civil registration.
One proxy indication of good progress against the target is awareness of the CNIC
campaign among WLG representatives interviewed in the survey. Over 93% said they
were aware of the campaign in their district. The respondents might well have been
referring to campaigns by other organisations as well, but it has to be noted that at
present, RHV is the only major NGO project working for civil registration in target
districts. The awareness of the campaign, however, varies across clusters. Central
Punjab had 100% respondents saying they knew of it. The corresponding figures were
lowest for the two clusters in Sindh.

26

Table 6: Awareness of the CNIC Campaign across Clusters (Sample Survey)

Are you aware of a campaign for

helping women with obtaining
CNICs in your district?
Yes
Cluster

CENTRAL
PUNJAB
KHYBER
PAKHTUN KHWA
LOWER SINDH
SOUTHERN
PUNJAB
UPPER PUNJAB

No

Not Sure

100%

Total
100%

96.2%

3.8%

100%

87.5%

6.3%

6.3%

100%

92.8%

4.3%

2.9%

100%

Despite much
progress, civil
CENTRAL97.4%
2.6%
100% registration
UPPER SINDH
Total
93.1%
4.5%
2.4%
100% campaigns
have had their
share of problems. WLG and CAC office-bearers spoke of issues, such as NADRA
officials refusing to send mobile vans to far-off places or asking for fuel and other
arrangements. A participant in the Upper Punjab FGD said, For the first campaign,
NADRA provided us a van, a driver and staff for a mobile unit. All other arrangements
including food, gathering people for registration, electricity generator for the van were
all our responsibility.
86.7%

11.1%

2.2%

100%

At places, WLG and CAC workers coordinating mobile campaigns for civil registration
have ended up disquieting the officials because we could not gather the required
number of people for registration once the van got there. Local politicians manipulating
NADRAs resources to facilitate their own constituents at the expense of more deserving
ones. In some districts, for example, district Shaheed Benazirabad, NADRA officials
have not been all that forthcoming because CACs and WLGs are not well-known and
registered entities like NGOs. Regrettably, these district-specific problems are not
adequately addressed in regular RHV reporting.
Advocacy with other departments has borne limited results through collective pressure
building. These have included planned activities, such as those related to Protection
against Harassment Bill 2010, and many unplanned and totally voluntary initiatives,
such as rallies and protests against irregularities in issuance of Watan Cards to flood
victims and local development schemes. In qualitative terms, what seems missing is
proper advocacy planning with objectives, tools, channels, target audiences and allies
defined.
Two-day workshops on leadership held under cluster 2 received good feedback.
However, there is a strong demand among women leaders that the training be followed
by a refresher course. While available resources might not allow that, the very fact that
activists are keen to learn bodes well for future capacity building work. In this context,
working out ways of cost-effective means, such as replication by master trainers at
community level, would be worthwhile. AF did not produce any training manual as part
of the leadership workshop, which makes replication difficult. Participants feedback
forms collected at the end of the workshops provide useful qualitative data but it is not

27

being used in regular project reporting. In terms of coverage, some FGD respondents
were of the view that government officials-other than those who are part of WLGsshould have been given a chance to participate as this could help build a better rapport
with them and earn their support on womens issues.

Cluster 3 Empowering civil society organisations to achieve poor women

citizens rights through awareness raising, capacity building and training
Capacity building workshops under Cluster 3 on internal organisational audits and
gender mainstreaming have been well-received. As was the case with the trainings
on leadership, WLG and CAC bearers again complained that the duration of the
workshop-one day-was not adequate to absorb the contents. There is a strong
demand for trainings on thematic issues, such as legal rights and gender equality.
Among WLG members who were NGO employees, some 51.8% said they had
participated in a training organised by Aurat Foundation during the past two years.
Among those who held a senior position within an NGO, 66.7% said they had
participated in a training compared to the corresponding figure of 33.3% among
mid-level and junior staff. Since the trainings aim at strengthening women in
leadership roles within civil society, the greater coverage of senior level employees
is understandable. However, one noteworthy finding is that Lower Sindh and KP
Province had no WLG members reporting to be employed at a senior position within
an NGO. As well as building the capacity of women leaders already holding
relatively senior positions in civil society, there might be a need to work toward
increasing their share in senior positions elsewhere.
Table 7: NGO Staff in WLGs: Senior Management and Others across Clusters

Position held within NGO

Senior
Management

Cluster
CENTRAL PUNJAB

50%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

20.8%

79.2%

100%

25%

75%

100%

100%

100%

78.6%

100%

CENTRAL-UPPER
SINDH
Total

Total

50%

KHYBER PAKHTUN
KHWA
LOWER SINDH
SOUTHERN
PUNJAB
UPPER PUNJAB

Others

21.4%

Survey data also shows that the awareness of district CACs and Aurat Foundations
work is lower among junior level NGO employees compared to senior ones as
depicted in tables below.

28

Table 8: Awareness about Citizens Action Committee: Comparison between Senior and
other NGO Staff in WLGs
Position Held
Are you aware of a Citizen Action
Committee in your district?
Yes

Senior
Management

No
Total

Others

Total

75.0%

68.2%

69.6%

25.0%

31.8%

30.4%

100%

100%

100%

Table 9: Awareness about Aurat Foundations Work: Comparison between Senior and other
NGO Staff in WLGs
Respondents
How aware would you say you are about
AFs work?
Well Aware

Senior
Management

Moderately Aware

Total

41.7%

32.6%

34.5%

58.3%

62.8%

61.8%

4.7%

3.6%

100%

100%

Unaware
Total

Others

100%

In what looks like a logical continuation of greater awareness of partners, there was a
higher percentage among women leaders at senior positions rating their trust in Aurat
Foundation as high compared to those at mid-level and junior positions.
Table 10: Level of Trust in Aurat Foundation: Comparison between Senior and other NGO
Staff in WLGs
Respondents
How would you rate your trust in
AF?
High
Moderate

Senior
Management

Total

42.9%

46.3%

41.7%

54.8%

51.9%

2.4%

1.9%

100%

100%

Not Sure
Total

Others

58.3%

100%

Targets with regard to producing posters on gender mainstreaming have been met.
However, there is no communication strategy under which such material is being
produced. That does not necessarily reflect negatively on the quality of the products.
However, proper strategy could have provided some rationale for using posters in place
of other possible means of rallying messages. All awareness raising work needs to be
monitored and evaluated like other project activities to gauge the results on peoples
knowledge and perception. In this context he survey finding about awareness of

29

Fundamental Rights among women leaders in the Constitution of Pakistan needs to

be taken seriously, since in the absence of good familiarity with these rights,
empowering civil society to achieve womens citizens rights does not look like a
very promising prospect10.
Cluster 4 Learning lessons and disseminating best practice through
innovative media and communications work.
As mentioned earlier under evaluation findings, objective 4 dealing with the
development of innovative media strategies for influencing public policy and
practice, has not been communicated clearly to WLGs and CACs. They are well
aware of the need for publicizing relevant issues through the press and have been
successful in doing that in varying degrees across regions. However, the wider aim
of using media to bring about desired changes in policy is not well understood. The
result is that engagement with media at the grassroots level has been piecemeal.
This has sometimes brought remarkable results at small scale such as a newspaper
story about a victim of sexual abuse getting the attention of the Chief Justice of
Balochistan High Court. However, representatives from most districts, except those
in Central Punjab and Southern Punjab complained of difficulties in working with the
media. The discussion again turned on the issue of financial resources with
participants pointing out that journalists ask for cash to print our stories. Those
from Balochistan mentioned that sensitive issues were not being reported because
the press was afraid of stepping on the toes of local landlords.
Except for district Gujranwala, where partners managed to rally messages through
FM radio, electronic and new media have not been used for advocacy. Some
districts in Punjab have produced leaflets on sexual harassment, violence against
women and civil registration but they are not a part of well-planned and results
oriented media strategy. For example, it is not clear who the intended audience is,
how messages are to be reinforced and what complementary channels are to be
used. WLGs and CACs have produced such material independently. On the positive
side, this had given them a strong of ownership about the material produced. A
negative consequence is that the material leaves much to be desired in terms of
quality.
Quantitative targets with regard to advocacy meetings with Gender Reforms Action
Programme (GRAP), NADRA and other actors have been met. However, no change
in provincial and national policies or laws has come about as yet. In the light of the
18th constitutional amendment, a number of ministries such as Social Welfare and
Women Development, Population Welfare and Labour are now provincial subjects.
In the longer run, the transfer of powers to provinces is likely to make advocacy
easier with one tier cut out. AF and partners will need to seize this opportunity as
the teething problems with the new set-up fizzle out. Conceptualizing advocacy on
a continuum from the soft end of information sharing and negotiations to the hard
end of demonstrations, protests and public interest litigation could help a lot plan
10

As mentioned earlier in the report, just 17.8% of respondents said they were aware of fundamental rights in the
constitution to a great extent. 66% were reportedly aware of them to some extent, close to 10% said they
were not aware at all, and the remaining were not sure.

30

with a view to influencing decision-makers. Advocacy, it has to be remembered is a

broader process than lobbying, the latter referring to efforts for changes in
legislation. The links between awareness-raising, community mobilization and
advocacy with decision-makers can hardly be over-emphasized. The point has to be
highlighted because around some issues, such as AF and other organisations
demand that next local body elections be held on party basis, a sizable percentage
of women appear to have an opposite position. Once people have been mobilised and
organised around an issue, their knowledge has been enhanced and behaviours altered,
advocacy can then draw on popular support and favourable public opinion.

31

4.

Review of Risks Analysis

The latest risk assessment produced by the implementing partner highlights some
pertinent issues but does not articulate the risks and mitigation measures very clearly. For
example, the statement, lack of coordination and capacity within government agencies
and other actors at federal and provincial levels, is so broad that it loses meaning. Who
are the actors? Can all actors, governmental and non-governmental be expected to have
coordination on every issue? It would help more if the precise nature of the risk were
articulated. Maybe the issue being discussed pertains to vertical programmes on gender
and womens rights running in isolation to provincial governments initiatives in that area.
We do not know unless the location of that risk is identified. Secondly, the addition of the
phrase capacity amounts to importing a new and a qualitatively different risk into the
framework. Is lack of coordination a result of inadequate capacity or could there be other
factors? Again, the second statement referring to a sharp political divide does not
pinpoint a risk as political divides on controversial issues are part and parcel of democratic
politics. Some mitigation measures mentioned under lack of political will to continue with
local government system make a lot of sense since they seem to be based on a good
understanding of maintaining vertical linkages in advocacy and lobbying work. To extend
this line of argument, it would also be pertinent to look for sources of risks within partners
at the grassroots level, for example the fact that vast numbers of them according to the
sample survey with WLG do not want the next local body elections held on political party
basis. The risk assessment as it stands now is reproduced below.

Nature of risk

Mitigation

Imp.

Prob
.

Lack of coordination
and capacity within
government agencies
and other actors at
federal and provincial
levels.

Careful interaction and networking to engage all actors High.

and support to ministers and national decision-makers to
(8)
become on one table;
Clear communications strategy on good practice,
including success stories from all provinces;
Link with work of other actors including DFID (gender
action plans) and multi-donor work to build government
capacity on gender.

Med.

Sharp political divide

among various political
parties,
stakeholders
and
the
present
government
on
controversial
issues
derailing the political
system

Careful dealings with different parties and use their Med.

manifestos and public commitments as advocacy tool;
Alliance building with like minded parties and with (7)
decision making bodies

Med.

(4)

(3)

32

Lack of political will to

continue with local
government
system
and address gender
gaps

The security and Law &

Order situation may
also negatively affect
the project staff and
district partners

Projects focus on participation of citizens in local

governance in the country and its continuity needs to be
emphasised for democratic setup;
Coordinated national advocacy activity by civil society,
continuing work in coordination with Local Council
Association to exert top-down and peer pressure on
political parties for continuity of local government system;
Use of national and international commitments and
accountability structures such as CEDAW, CRC, MDG
plans, etc. as leverage;
Public Interest Litigation by partners.
Focus on peace building and keep security measures at
all levels and remain careful, particularly at local level;
Devise local strategies and formulate plans for security;
Work in alliances to deal with the sensitive issue and
defending human rights, etc.

High.

Med.

(9)

(5)

High

Low

(9)

(3)

33

5. Recommendations
In the light of evaluation findings, we finally present a set of general and cross-cutting
recommendations followed by recommendations for the four activity clusters.
Suggestions put forward by CAC and WLG coordinators where backed by evaluation
findings have also been included.

General Recommendations
1. Project LFA should be revised to make sure activities, outcomes, purpose and
goal are logically linked. An additional layer of outputs may be included to
capture immediate results. Concepts and terms such as empowerment and
marginalized women should be assigned operational definitions. Indicators
need to capture both qualitative and quantitative aspects of results and
activities. WLGs and CACs need to have greater clarity on all project objectives
as distinct from activities.
2. Project monitoring needs to become more results-oriented rather than just
reporting the number of activities undertaken. Staffing needs for monitoring and
documentation should be addressed immediately.
3. Data on processes and results should be disaggregated by districts as a means
to identifying variation across regions.
4. Survey data reveal KP Province to be behind others in terms of participation of
WLG members in activities and awareness of rights issues. Future planning
should make sure corrective measures are adopted to bring it par with better
performing regions, such as Southern Punjab.
5. CACs and WLGs should be provided with easy-to-use monitoring checklists to
document both quantitative and qualitative aspects of their work, such as nature
of womens participation in activities.
6. Development of training manuals and participants folders or work books should
be a standard requirement for all capacity building workshops.
7. A sustainability plan should be put in place and communicated with WLGs and
CACs.
8. OGB needs to make sure that there are strong linkages between RHV and other
initiatives, such as We Can Campaign and projects in disaster management,
climate change and education.
9. Both OGB and the implementing partner need to increase the frequency of field
visits as a means to motivating activists on the ground and to ensure effective
monitoring.
10. Projects risks assessment should be made more precise in terms of locating the
sources of risks and identifying mitigation measures.

Networking with Women Activists

1. OGB and the implementing partner need to acknowledge the fact that almost all
WLGs have a certain percentage of inactive members. The problem is particularly
worrisome in Balochistan and KP Province. New members should be brought in to
replace the ones who cannot participate anymore with. Lists of members should
be updated making sure correct and current contact numbers are available.

34

2. In revitalizing WLGs, efforts should be made that women from religious

minorities and lower castes, refugees, and the disabled are included wherever
possible.
3. In the light of limited funds for operational expenses, some activities, such as
issue sensitization meetings, could be held at the union council and tehsil levels
with focal persons at those levels communicating deliberations to members at
the district level.
4. Within WLGs, younger women, LHVs, LHWs and housewives do not appear to be
as active and aware on pertinent issues as those in other categories. Efforts
should be made to facilitate better and more effective participation on their part.
The fact that women leaders who are CAC members have better awareness of
some rights issues than non-CAC members could also inform networking and
capacity building activities.
5. The newsletter Tehreek should be published at least quarterly. In Sindh
province, there is a strong and justifiable demand that Tehreek be published
bilingually i.e. Urdu and Sindhi. Dissemination should be streamlined as some
36% of WLG members have never seen it.

Working with Public Institutions and Decision-Making Forums

1. A better and more nuanced understanding of advocacy is required as a process
aimed at influencing decision-making, institutional practices, systems and
attitudes of those in power. Advocacy should not be confused with community
mobilization and lobbying. The links between all three need to be understood and
plans made accordingly.
2. Procedural spaces available to influence decision-making-parliamentary
committees, Ombudsmen, freedom of information provisions at federal and
provincial levels-should be identified and made use of.
3. Awareness of constitutional rights appears to be weak among WLG members and
their perceptions about the repeal of discriminatory laws are not all that positive.
AF needs to make efforts to ensure that its lobbying agenda at the federal level
is complemented by womens backing at the grassroots level.
4. OGB and AF should meet up with senior government officials in districts where
activists have had problems working with the government as a gesture of moral
support, if nothing else. Such an intervention could actually facilitate women
leaders work as large NGOs and funding agencies are sometimes taken more
seriously than local voluntary groups.
5. Guide-lines and standard operating procedures should be developed to deal with
local police shelter homes, ensuring the dignity and privacy of women who the
volunteers are trying to help.
6. Advocacy efforts at the grassroots level should be backed up by support from AF
and OGB in approaching higher-ups in the bureaucracy where required.

Empowering Civil Society Organisations

1. Civil society actors other than NGOs, such as trade unions and bar associations
should be included in capacity building programmes and other activities to
broaden the support base for womens rights. Strong partnership with the legal
community is required in the light of frequent legal issues that are brought to the
attention of CAC and WLG office-bearers.

35

2. Among NGO employees who are members of WLGs, the junior ones require more
hand-holding and greater awareness of RHV.
3. OGB partners in other programme areas should be enlisted to actively work on
raising womens voice in line with RHV objectives.

Disseminating Best Practices through Innovative Media Strategies

1. WLGs and CACs should be trained in developing media strategies and not
just print material. Such training should help them with audience
segmentation, developing audience-specific messages and using an
appropriate media mix in the light of well-defined objectives.
2. The project requires a full-time advocacy and media specialist to provide
technical support to partners at the grassroots level as well as to ensure
vertical links between advocacy at different levels of governance.
3. The implementing partners need to engage with senior management and
editorial heads of media groups, both print and electronic, to bring home the
newsworthiness of RHV activities and project results so that reporters at local
level takes more interest.

36

37

Annexure

Annex 1: Agenda for the Consultative Workshop

Raising Her Voice

Mid-Term Evaluation Consultative Workshop

Dec 14, 2010, Islamabad
Session

Time

1. Introduction and Setting

the Tone
2. Reviewing Project
Design & Context
3. Appreciative Inquiry:
What Works?
Lunch Break
Session 3 Presentations
4. Reflections on Key
Evaluation Questions
5. Reviewing Draft Survey
Questionnaire

9:30-10:15

6. Field Work Plan and

Arrangements

4:45-5:15

10:15-12:00
12:00-1:00
1:00-2:00
2:00-2:30
2:30-4:00
4:00-4:45

Annex 2: Focus Group Agenda

(Held between December 20, 2010 to January 3, 2011)

Introduction

10-00-10:30

Projects Inception and Formation of Women Leader Groups: Experience-sharing

10:30-11:30

Appreciate Inquiry

11:30-1:00

Lunch

1:00-2:00

Constraints and Challenges

2:00-3:30

Recommendations

3:30-4:00

Annex 3: Survey Questionnaire

Questionnaire No

(Leave the above box blank)

Aurat Foundation & Oxfam GB

Raising Her Voice (2008-13)
Mid-Term Evaluation
(Telephonic Survey Questionnaire for Women Leaders)

Fill out Section A before you call up the respondent. Please write appropriate codes
provided with the interviewees list.

SECTION A : IDENTIFICATION

A01

Date

_______________

A02

District

____________________

Code ____

____

A03

Cluster

____________________

Code ____

____

A04

Province

____________________

Code ____

A04

Name of the Interviewer

____________________

Signature

____________________

When you call tell the respondent: I am collecting information to review the work done
by Aurat Foundation in partnership with an international NGO Oxfam in their district.
We also want to see how we can improve our work in future. I have got a questionnaire
now and will need about 10-15 minutes of your time. Can you spare time for us please?
Say you will begin by asking some questions about the respondents work, education
level and background. Ask B01

SECTION B: General Information about the Respondent

B01

Full Name of the Respondent

______________________________

B02

What is your age in years?

_________________Years (Write in Numbers. Write 99 if the respondent does not know).

B03

1
2
3
4
5
B04

1
2
3
4
5
6
B05

What is your marital status?

Married
Never Married
Divorced
Widow/Widower
Other (Please Specify) _____________
What is your mother tongue?

Balochi
Brahvi
Hindko
Lasi
Punjabi
Pushto

(Do not read out options)

7
8
9
10

Seraiki
Sindhi
Urdu
Other (Please Specify)
______________________________

What is your religion? (Do not read out options)

Muslim

2
3
4

Christian
Hindu
Ahmadi

5
6
7

Bahai
Sikh
Other (Please Specify)
_____________

B06 What is your main profession? (Do not read out options. If the answer is school
teacher or college teacher, ask if its a private or a government school)

Government Servant (Other than

Teacher)
2 School Teacher (Government)
3 College Teacher (Government)
4 School Teacher (Private)
5 College Teacher (Private)
6 NGO Employee
7 Doctor
8 Lady Health Worker (LHW)
17 Other (Please Specify)________________

9
10
11
12
13
14

Lady Health Visitor (LHV)

Mid-wife
Lawyer
Journalist
Business Person
Home-based worker (such as
home-based tailor)
15 Housewife
16 Student

B07. What was the highest education level you completed (in number of years)?
______________________ (Do not write the name of the degree. Write 10 for
matric, 12 for FA and so on. Write 0 if the interviewee
has had no formal education)
B08. How often do you use the Internet? (Read out options)

1. Regularly
2. Occasionally
3. Never
B09. How often do you read a newspaper? (Read out options)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Daily
Few times a week
Once a week
Occasionally
Never

Tell the respondent: We would now be interested in getting your views about
some important issues related to womens rights and democratic governance.
SECTION C: Knowledge and Perceptions about Womens Rights & Democratic
Governance
C01
1
2
3

Do you think there are laws in Pakistan, which discriminate against women?
(Read out options)
Yes
No
Do not know

(If the answer is Yes, ask C02. Otherwise ask C03)

C02

If yes, can you name one such law?

1)
2)

C03
1
2
3
C04

_____________________________
Do not know

All laws that discriminate against women should be repealed. Do you agree
with the statement? (Read out options)
Agree
Disagree
Neither Agree nor Disagree
Have you heard about the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)?

1. Yes
2. No
C05. There is an opinion that minimum legal age at marriage for girls should be no
less than 18 years. Do you agree with the statement? (Read out
options)
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Not Sure
C06. How familiar would you say you are with the Fundamental Rights given in the
Constitution of Pakistan? (Read out options)
1.
2.
3.
4.

To a great extent
To some extent
Not at all
Cannot Say

C07. Are you aware of the new law called, Protection against Harassment at
Workplace Act, 2010?

the

1. Yes
2. No
(If the answer is Yes, ask C08. Otherwise skip to C09)
C08. How optimistic are you that this law can be fully implemented in your district?
(Read out options)
1. To a great extent
2. To some extent

3. Not optimistic at all

4. Cannot say
C09. How would you rate the overall responsiveness of incumbent MNAs and MPAs
from your district toward womens rights? (Read out options)
1
2

Good
Moderate

3
4

Poor
Not Sure

C10. To what extent would you say had elected representatives in their last tenure
under the local government system responded to womens development needs in your
district? (Read out options)
1. To a great extent
2. To some extent

3. Not at all
4. Not Sure

C11. How would you like next local body elections held? (Read out options)
1. On Political Party Basis
2. Non-Party Basis
C12
1
2
3

Which of the following would you trust more for seeking justice? (Read out
options)
Jirga/Panchayat
Formal Courts
Neither of these

C13. Are you a member of a political party?

1. Yes
2. No
3. Cannot Say
(If the answer is Yes, ask C14. Otherwise move on to C15 now).

C14. Which political party do you belong to?

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

ANP
Jamat-e-Islami
JUI (Fazlur Rehman)
Jamhori Watan Party
MQM

6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

PML (N)
PML (Q)
PML (F)
PPP
PPP (Sherpao)
National Party
Tehreek-e-Insaf

13. Other_______,
C.15. Do you intend to run for a public office in future?
1. Yes
2. No

3. Cannot Say

Tell the respondent: We are now moving on to the last section where we
would like to understand your experiences with Aurat Foundation and
get your feedback and recommendations, which will help us in the
future.

SECTION D: Involvement with and Feedback on RHV

D01. Approximately how many other women leaders selected by Aurat Foundation in
your district have you met?

________________________(write in numbers. 99 if the respondent cannot say).

D02. Are you aware of a Citizens Action Committee or CAC in your district?
1. Yes
2. No
(If the answer is Yes, ask D03. Otherwise move on to D04)
D03. Are you a member of CAC yourself?
1. Yes
2. No
D04. How would you rate CACs role in helping protect womens rights in your district?
(Read out options)

1
2

Good
Moderate

3
4

Poor
Do not know

D05. Are you aware of any campaign run in your district for helping women acquire
computerized national identity cards? (Read out options)
1. Yes
2. No

3. Not Sure

D06. Have you yourself participated in a meeting organized by Aurat Foundation

during the past two years?
1. Yes
2. No
D07. What issues were discussed in the last meeting you went to?
(write up to 3 issues only in key words)
1._________________________________________________________

2._________________________________________________________

3._________________________________________________________
D08. Have you had a chance to participate in any training event organized by Aurat
Foundation in the past two years?
1. Yes
2. No
(If the answer is Yes, ask D09. Otherwise move on to D10 now)
D09. Where would you rate your satisfaction level with the training event(s) your
participated in? (Read out options)
1. Satisfied
2. Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied

3. Dissatisfied
4. Not Sure

D10. How aware would you say you are about the work Aurat Foundation does?
(Read out options)
1
2

Well Aware
Moderately Aware

Unaware

(If the answer is 1 or 2 ask D11. And if the answer is 3, skip D11 and ask D12 now)

D11. How would you rate your level of trust in Aurat Foundation? (Read out options)
1
2

High
Moderate

D12. Have you seen the newsletter Tehreek?

3
4

Low
Not Sure

1. Yes
2. No
(If the answer is Yes, ask D13. Otherwise move on to D14 now)

D13. How informative would you say the newsletter is?

1. Very Informative
2. Informative
3. Somewhat informative

4. Not so Informative
5. Not informative at all

D14. What are the three most pressing issues in your district that you think NGOs
need to work on? (Ask the respondent to be brief).

1__________________________________________________________________

2__________________________________________________________________

3___________________________________________________________________

Ask the respondent if she has been a councilor or an elected member in the local
government. If the answer is Yes, administer Section E. Also ask the respondent or
check the answer to B06 to see if she is an NGO employee. If she is, administer Section
F. If the respondent has neither been a councilor nor is she an NGO employee, close the
interview by reading out the passage in the box below.

CLOSING WORDS: We are extremely thankful for your time and support. The
information and views you have shared with us are very important and will
help us with our work a lot. Thanks again.

SECTION E: Only for Ex-Councilors

E01. What level were you a councilor at?

1. Union Council
2. Tehsil

3. District

E02. Were you a member of any monitoring committee as a councilor?

1. Yes
2. No

3. Do not know

(If the answer is Yes ask E03. Otherwise move on to E04)

E03. Which monitoring committee were you a member of? (Do not read out options.
Check more than 1 if necessary)
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.

Education
Finance
Health
Literacy
Municipal Services

F.
G.
H.
I.

Public Safety
Works & Services
Justice
Other___________________________
(Specify)

E04. Did you have a chance to table any resolution in the council/assembly on
womens rights during your tenure?
1. Yes
2. No

3. Not Sure

E05. Would you say as a female councilor you enjoyed equal rights with your male
counterparts i.e. male councilors?

1. Yes
2. No

3. Not Sure

E06. Are you satisfied with the functioning of ongoing CCB projects in your district?
1. Yes
2. No

SECTION F: Only for NGO Employees

F01. What organisation do you work for?
______________________(Write out the name)

3. Not Sure

F02.

What is your exact designation with the organisation?

_________________________________________(Specify)
F03. How long have you held this position?
1.
2.
3.
4.

Less than a year

A year or so
Two years or so
Three years or so

5. Four years or so
6. Five years or more
7. Other__________________________
(Specify)

F04. To what level would you say you are involved in making important
your organisation? (Read out options)
1. High
2. Moderate
F05.

decisions

in

3. Low
4. Not Sure

Would you say your organisation provides a supportive environment for

women to work in? (Read out options)
1
2
3

Yes
No
Not Sure

Annex 4: Respondents Profile (Sample Survey)

Questionnaires were administered to 253 WLG leaders in twenty districts. In
Balochsitan, despite repeated efforts only three WLG leaders could be contacted for
telephonic interviews. The data from Balochistan is thus not comparable with other
clusters and hence excluded from the seven analysis. For the remaining three clusters,
the breakdown of respondents is given in the table below. Subsequent tables present
data on variables such as age, education background, occupation and their distribution
across clusters.

Annexed Table I: Distribution of Respondents by Clusters

Cluster
CENTRAL PUNJAB

Frequency

KHYBER PAKHTUN
KHWA
LOWER SINDH

Percent

35

13.8

27

10.7

32

12.6

SOUTHERN PUNJAB

71

28.1

UPPER PUNJAB

46

18.2

CENTRAL-UPPER SINDH

39

15.4

250

100

Total

Annexed Table II: Age Profile

Frequency

Missing
Total

Percent

18 to 24

17

6.8

25 to 29

34

13.6

30 to 34

46

18.4

35 to 39

37

14.8

40 to 44

41

16.4

45 to 49

38

15.2

50 to 54

22

8.8

55 and
Above
Total

15

6.0

250

100

System

3
253

Annexed Table III: Age Profile by Clusters

CENTRAL
PUNJAB

Age Categories
18 to 24

KHYBER
PAKHTUN
KHWA

LOWER
SINDH

SOUTHERN
PUNJAB

UPPER
PUNJAB

CENTRALUPPER SINDH

Total

8.6%

3.7%

3.1%

8.6%

2.3%

10.3%

6.8%

25 to 29

14.3%

14.8%

9.4%

18.6%

6.8%

15.4%

13.6%

30 to 34

14.3%

18.5%

18.8%

24.3%

11.4%

20.5%

18.4%

35 to 39

14.3%

14.8%

15.6%

14.3%

13.6%

15.4%

14.8%

40 to 44

14.3%

18.5%

31.3%

12.9%

18.2%

10.3%

16.4%

45 to 49

11.4%

18.5%

3.1%

14.3%

25.0%

17.9%

15.2%

50 to 54

5.7%

7.4%

15.6%

4.3%

13.6%

10.3%

8.8%

17.1%

3.7%

3.1%

2.9%

9.1%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

55 and
Above
Total

Annexed Table IV: Marital Status

Marital Status

Frequency
Married
Never
Married
Divorced
Widow or
Widower
Total

Percent

163

64.4

74

29.2

1.2

13

5.1

253

100

Annexed Table V: Respondents by Religion

Religion

Frequency
Muslim
Christian
Bahai
Total

Percent

247

98.8

.8

.4

250

100

Annexed Table VI: Occupational Groups across Clusters

6.0%
100%

100%

Cluster
KHYBER
PAKHTUN
KHWA

CENTRAL
PUNJAB
Profession

Government
Servant other than
Teacher
School Teacher
(Government)

8.6%

LOWER
SINDH

18.5%

5.7%

College Teacher
(Government)
School Teacher
Private
College Teacher
Private
NGO Employee
Doctor

14.3%

10.3%

10.4%

3.1%

1.4%

4.3%

12.8%

4.4%

4.3%

2.6%

2.0%

4.3%

15.4%

7.2%

2.6%

.4%

6.5%

12.8%

16.8%

8.7%

2.6%

4.8%

2.2%

2.6%

2.0%

2.6%

2.8%

18.5%

21.9%

11.4%

7.4%

3.1%

7.4%

25.4%

6.3%

4.2%

6.3%

8.5%

Journalist

Home based
Worker
Housewife

5.6%

1.4%

1.4%

Business Person

Total

8.7%

11.4%

11.4%

CENTRALUPPER SINDH

11.3%

3.1%

3.7%

UPPER
PUNJAB

6.3%

6.3%

Lady Health
Worker
Lady Health Visitor
Lawyer

SOUTHERN
PUNJAB

3.1%

4.8%
2.2%

2.6%

1.4%

5.7%

1.2%
.8%

2.2%

1.2%

11.4%

33.3%

34.4%

8.5%

21.7%

28.2%

20.4%

Student

5.7%

3.7%

3.1%

4.2%

4.3%

2.6%

4.0%

Other

2.9%

7.4%

4.2%

4.3%

3.1%

22.5%

26.1%

2.6%

13.6%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

Social Worker
(Volunteer)
Total

11.4%
100%

100%

Annexed Table VII: Educational Level Attained

Educational Level
Up to Middle

Frequency
19

7.6

Matriculation

43

17.2

Intermediate

46

18.4

Graduate

57

22.8

85

34.0

250

100

Master's and
Higher
Total

Percent

3.2%

Annexed Table VIII: Educational Profile across Clusters

Cluster

Education Categories
Up to Middle

CENTRAL
PUNJAB

KHYBER
PAKHTUN
KHWA

LOWER
SINDH

SOUTHERN
PUNJAB

UPPER
PUNJAB

CENTRALUPPER SINDH

Total

3.7%

15.6%

2.8%

15.2%

10.3%

7.6%

Matriculation

14.3%

44.4%

3.1%

15.5%

21.7%

10.3%

17.2%

Intermediate

22.9%

29.6%

3.1%

21.1%

21.7%

10.3%

18.4%

Graduate

22.9%

18.5%

28.1%

23.9%

21.7%

20.5%

22.8%

Master's and
Higher

40.0%

3.7%

50.0%

36.6%

19.6%

48.7%

34.0%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

Total

Annexed Table IX : Newspaper Readership across Clusters

Cluster

Newspaper Reading
Daily
Few Times a
week
Once a week
Occasionally
Never
Total

CENTRAL
PUNJAB

KHYBER
PAKHTUN
KHWA

LOWER
SINDH

SOUTHERN
PUNJAB

UPPER
PUNJAB

Total

48.6%

14.8%

53.1%

50.7%

40.0%

39.5%

43.1%

11.4%

3.7%

9.4%

8.5%

24.4%

18.4%

12.9%

2.9%

14.8%

12.5%

4.2%

13.3%

2.6%

7.7%

34.3%

59.3%

15.6%

25.4%

17.8%

26.3%

27.8%

2.9%

7.4%

9.4%

11.3%

4.4%

13.2%

8.5%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

Annexed Table X : Internet Usage across Clusters

Use of Internet
Cluster

Regularly
CENTRAL
PUNJAB
KHYBER
PAKHTUN KHWA
LOWER SINDH
SOUTHERN
PUNJAB
UPPER PUNJAB
CENTRALUPPER SINDH

Total

CENTRALUPPER SINDH

Occasionally

Never

Total

11.4%

31.4%

57.1%

100%

7.4%

18.5%

74.1%

100%

21.9%

21.9%

56.3%

100%

15.5%

28.2%

56.3%

100%

13.3%

26.7%

60.0%

100%

12.8%

17.9%

69.2%

100%

14.1%

24.9%

61.0%

100%