EMPOWERING WORKING WOMEN IN THE MALE DOMINATED SOCIETY: A CROSS-REGION ANALYSIS OF PAKISTAN

Abstract

The study analyzes the complexities of women's empowerment and labor force participation in Pakistan's service sector, as well as the regional inequalities of regional areas in a male-dominated patriarchal wellbeing. The study uses quantitative methodology, specifically PDHS survey data (2017-18), and applied binary logistic regression analysis to assess decision-making in four types, health care, household purchases, visiting the family, and husband’s money. The study finds that a variety of social-demographics, such as age, education, the wife and husband's employment status, education, access to media, and other factors, determines women's empowerment. Overall, it finds that women obtain more autonomy from decision-making in urban areas as compared to rural areas, particularly urban areas in Punjab. Women from tribal regions once adjunct underdeveloped regions, e.g., FATA and Baluchistan respectively, dominate decision-making. The study illustrates the influence of sociocultural norms, regional differences, and economic factors can help conceptualize limitations of women’s agency in the domestic, and public realm. The study concludes with targeted recommended policy solutions, such as considering regional differences when planning policy solutions, increasing educational opportunities for women, safety nets such as legal protection, and intervention using media promotion to promote gender equality and women's empowerment related to the women’s participation in Pakistan's changing economy.