About D4WEE

Pakistan's digital economy is growing rapidly, with over 300,000 IT professionals and rising global freelance rankings. Yet this transformation remains deeply unequal: women represent only 14% of the tech workforce and face a 65% internet access gap compared to men. Cultural barriers, limited mobility, and lack of gender-responsive training continue to exclude young women from digital opportunities.

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), with support from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), launched the Digitalization for Women Economic Empowerment (D4WEE) project (2024–2028) to bridge this digital gender divide. Operating across six districts in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa—including Peshawar, Swabi, and Mardan—the initiative empowers young women through digital skills training, mentorship, community-based tech hubs, and partnerships with the private sector and public institutions.

The program's primary outcome is to enable 5,400 young women (90% of those trained) to generate income through digital skills in freelancing, employment, or entrepreneurship. To achieve this, we will train 6,000 women in ICT, software development, and data analytics across Peshawar, Mardan, and Swabi.

Following their training, 600 graduates will be inducted into industry mentorship programs, while 12 multi-purpose centers will be established as district-level tech hubs to support ongoing learning and collaboration.