Bridging the Gap: Aligning Pakistan’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy with SDG 5 on Gender Equality in the Workplace

Abstract

Pakistan's emphasis on science, technology, and innovation (STI) has intensified over the past five decades, showcasing growing instances of effective practices. Numerous barriers to sustainable development exist in Pakistan; for instances, inequalities within and across emerging nations, such as Pakistan, are increasing, and significant discrepancies in opportunity, money, and power endure. Despite the growing focus of policymakers and organizations on incorporating gender into STI policies and programs to attain gender equality for all women and girls, inequality continues to pose a significant impediment to sustainable development across the continent. “The purpose of this study is to address the challenges faces by Pakistan for the execution of STI policies from the perspective of SDG 5.Data was collected from 70 faculty members through quantitative survey.This study analyses Pakistan's science, technology, and innovation policy, emphasizing the nation's initiatives to incorporate a mission-oriented component and human resource development connected to Sustainable Development Goal 5: gender equality. It concludes that while indications of such issues manifest as policies, the implementation of these policies for missions remains incomplete, and there is a deficiency in the execution of the code of conduct for gender equality, which adversely affects the implementation of STI policies for an innovative working environment.