Women Councilors in Local Government of Hyderabad Sindh: Glitches and Prospects

Abstract

The local Government Ordinances 2001 were promulgated in all provinces to let the power and authority step down to the grassroots level of Pakistan’s poverty ridden society and usher in an era of genuine democracy. This paper attempts investigate the causes of partial failure of women councilors in district Hyderabad and draw recommendations for development a future strategy aimed at empowerment of women in local bodies system to make the role of women councilors more effective. A random sample of 122 women councilors of district Hyderabad were administered copies of structured questionnaire and the findings were analyzed to examine inter alia discriminatory attitudes of local government functionaries vis-à-vis participation of women councilors in budget making and development planning process as well as appraising the criteria for selecting women councilors on the reserved seats.