LAHORE - Civil society organisations have demanded bringing Home Based Workers under the social protection mechanism and adopting the national and provincial home based policies.

Addressing a press conference yesterday, Ume-laila Azhar of HomeNet Pakistan said “Home-based work is a global phenomenon, found in countries rich and poor, and exists in all sectors of employment, including manufacturing, services and agro-based and food sectors. HBWs contribute significantly to the national and global economies and are linked to the formal economy through value chains and supply chains and local markets. They are generally not incorporated into national data collection systems or into development agendas and programs and, thus, their contribution remains invisible and unrecognized.”

Mahnaz Rafi demanded the government speedy approval of Provincial Home Based Workers (HBWs) policy. The women empowerment Package 2012 included the Home Based workers policy but till date Punjab government have failed to fulfill its commitment for protecting millions home based workers in the province. Chief Minister Punjab must announce the pending HBWs policy.

Khalid Mahmood said that Punjab government has taken some good steps for providing protection to the women through various legislations and amendments but the issue HBWs has yet to be resolved.