Project Summary

Pakistan’s rapid digital expansion has created new opportunities for access, participation, and inclusion, particularly for women and young people. At the same time, it has led to a rise in technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV), including online harassment, image-based abuse, and cyberstalking, compounded by low digital literacy and fragmented institutional responses.

In response, UNDP, working with national partners, is strengthening a coordinated, survivor-centred framework to address TFGBV. The project focuses on improving institutional capacity and coordination, expanding safe and confidential reporting and support mechanisms, piloting an AI-enabled Digital Safety Helpdesk, and promoting prevention through awareness and behaviour change. Together, these efforts aim to enable safer and more inclusive digital spaces for women and girls across Pakistan.

Objectives

• Strengthen national coordination and institutional capacity through harmonised protocols, referral pathways, and data standards.
• Improve survivor-centred responses and ethical digital-evidence practices through international technical cooperation.
• Pilot an AI-enabled Digital Safety Helpdesk to improve access to safe, confidential reporting and referrals.

Promote prevention and behaviour change through awareness, youth engagement, and partnerships with digital platforms and universities.

Outcomes

• Improved access to safe, confidential, and user-friendly reporting and support mechanisms for survivors.
• Stronger inter-agency coordination and more consistent handling of TFGBV cases.
• Reduced secondary victimisation through survivor-centred protocols and practices.
• Increased awareness and adoption of safer online behaviours, particularly among youth and high-risk groups.
• Stronger institutional learning and accountability through better data and insights on TFGBV.