Socio Economic Factors Influencing Women Empowerment in Sindh: A Case Study of Hyderabad District

The most sustainable wealth of a Nation is its human resources, and women make up the half of population thus, it is economically imperative to empower women to grow and prosper in all socio-economic landscapes. Given the importance of women’s role in bringing economic growth, peace and prosperity to a nation, the main objective of this study is to identify and analyze the impact of factors that influence women empowerment in Hyderabad District, Sindh Pakistan. After an extensive review of the literature and discussion with field experts, major factors related to social and economic categories were identified, which were tested using multiple regression to assess their impacts. The results showed that women are being deprived of their basic human rights such as choice of marriage, right to inheritance, ownership of land, right to do work as per preference, freedom of expression and mobility and are largely barred from working in hi-tech industrial sectors due to cultural taboos as such jobs are viewed suitable to only men. The findings would help policymakers in making informed decisions to enhance women empowerment, enabling them to contribute towards socio-economic development at local and national levels.