Since the astonishing victory in December, 2009, when Supreme Court passed its verdict on the registration of transgender’s CNIC under the third gender category, the Supreme Court took another remarkable step, on 9th May, 2018, towards recognizing the rights of the transgender community by allowing them to choose their own gender on their CNIC. [1] However, these steps have not been very successful in providing these vulnerable individuals with better lives or economic opportunities. According to the sixth Population and Housing census, 10,418 transgenders live in Pakisatn, a figure, according to independent observers most likely under-reported.[2] Despite these recent developments trangenders still face extreme discrimination, both in their social and economic lives as they are forced to limit themselves to the stereotypical roles of begging, dancing, and singing to earn their livings.
CSC Empowerment and Inclusion Programme (CEIP), a microfinance institute, believes in financial inclusion of all individuals, particularly the poor and marginalized. So far, it has economically empowered over 185,000 clients, of which 99% are females, with its microfinance support of Rs. 5.9 billion impacting over 1.1 million lives. Recognizing the need to empower transgender and help them in their movement towards equality, CEIP has extended its Ride with Pride initiative to the transgender community.
On 4th June, 2018, CEIP signed a Memorandum of Understanding with two organizations working to improve the vulnerable conditions of the transgender community, The Gender Guardian (TGG) and Go Green Welfare Society (GGWS), to include transgender in its client base. CEIP has been providing reliable, affordable, and secure transportation to the urban women, and is now extending these facilities to the transgender community, who have a dire need to commute to and from their workplaces, and colleges. The pilot scheme will be initiated with 8 transgenders women nominated by TGG and GGWS. These women would be provided with formal training to ride scooties before they hit the road. The launching ceremony of this joint initiative is tentatively planned in August ‘18. Furthermore, in order to secure an economic avenue for its Ride with Pride clients, CEIP is in talks with ride-hailing companies to provide financial opportunities to females and transgenders alike, to register themselves as drivers, which will help them to generate income from the product.
[2] https://nation.com.pk/29-Aug-2017/nadra-introduces-policy-to-register-transgender-persons