Locations
In the flood-affected district of Badin, Sindh, 21-year-old Zamiran’s life was marked by constant hardship. Married to Habibullah, a daily wage laborer earning less than US$2 a day, she struggled to secure even the most basic necessities.
Yet, beyond financial instability, there was an invisible barrier that defined her reality: a missing National Identity Card (NIC).
Without an NIC, she was cut off from vital services. She couldn’t access healthcare, enroll in welfare programs, open a bank account, or even cast her vote. Bureaucratic hurdles, missing documents, and financial constraints made the process feel impossible.
“I felt like I didn’t exist,” she recalls.
Bridging the gap to belonging
Hope arrived through UNDP’s Strengthening Electoral and Legislative Processes (SELP) project. In partnership with the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI), SELP launched an NIC registration drive in the flood-affected areas of Sindh and Balochistan, focusing on marginalized communities, particularly women, who face systemic barriers in obtaining legal identification.
Zamiran reached out to the project’s caseworkers and received extensive support in navigating the system. They helped her secure her birth certificate from the local Union Council as well as her marriage documentation— critical steps she once thought were beyond reach. Through targeted outreach, awareness campaigns, and direct coordination with the National Database and Registration Authority, Zamiran finally received her NIC— a single piece of plastic, but a transformation decades in the making.
A future reclaimed
For Zamiran, this small green card represents something far greater than legal recognition: it marks the start of a new chapter in her life.
With her NIC in hand, she accessed healthcare at a government hospital during her pregnancy, receiving free medicines—a service once out of reach. She also used it to apply for a loan from a local community organization to invest in farming and purchase seeds, improving her livelihood. Now enrolled in a government income support program, she has the option to replace the loan utility with this incentive, providing even greater financial stability.
But most importantly, she looks forward to casting her vote in the upcoming election, knowing that, for the first time, her voice truly counts. “Before, I was invisible. Now, I have an identity. I have rights. My future is in my hands.”
Zamiran’s journey doesn’t end here. Inspired by her experience, she now actively encourages other women in her community to register, determined to break the cycle of exclusion.
A call for inclusion
Zamiran’s story is not unique: approximately 8.6 million women in Pakistan remain without a legal identity, denying them access to education, economic opportunities, and democratic participation.
UNDP’s SELP initiative proves that real change begins with locally driven action, where targeted outreach and direct engagement with communities can bridge the gap for those left behind.
For Zamiran, getting her name registered in national records is more than just a statistic—it’s a milestone. She stands as a testament to the power of inclusion—a reminder that recognition is the first step toward justice, and no one should be left unseen.
Story by: Salma Hassan, UNDP Pakistan
About the project:
Through the SELP project, UNDP and partners have supported over 100,000 women, elderly, persons with disabilities, and religious minorities across Pakistan to reduce gender gap in electoral rolls and to help them acquire their NICs, paving the way for access to essential rights, services, and civic engagement.
