Thematic Stream: Legal Empowerment

Problem: As per The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, target 16.3 promises to “ensure equal access to justice for all.” However, the goal is largely unmet with the World Justice Project reporting that globally 5.2 billion people i.e. two-thirds of the world’s population face justice issues.

Globally, 1.5 billion people cannot obtain justice for criminal, civil and administrative issues due to various structural obstacles that hinder their access to justice institutions and around 4.5 billion people are excluded from opportunities the law provides due to lack of legal tools. 

In the case of Pakistan, justice to legal institutions remains largely inaccessible for marginalized and disempowered communities either due to structural hurdles or lack of legal tools (such as identification documents). While the country has made substantial strides in terms of legislating, the implementation of said legislation to provide justice for all remains largely unmet. Lack of access to justice creates an environment where there is no equal opportunity and the marginalized are discriminated against.

Goal: To educate, empower, and build the agency of  all communities so they’re able to access justice.