The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Technology Board announced an updated mobile app’ The Safe Girls’ for female Pink Sakura bus operators.
According to a official report, the app has been updated to allow passengers to communicate with families and friends while traveling online.
“Through this safety app, women and girls can share their live location with trusted contacts, give distress signals to family and friends, call police emergency numbers, rate the safety level of the location and check the live location of the buses,” said Managing Director KPITB Dr Shahbaz Khan while giving the demo of the fresh features.
The KPITB project Safe Women, with financial support from Japan and technical support by UN Woman Pakistan and UNOPS, represents a K-P Government Sakura Bus Project
As a delegate of Ziaullah Bangash, Chief Minister of Informatics, female members of the provincial assembly, Trans Peshawar–Sakura Bus Operating Company, KPCSW leaders, UN Women, representatives of the UNOPS and UNOPS participated in the demonstration.
The project included 14 buses and 31 prefabricated bus stops, fitted with solar panels, to provide a continuous lighting source
The bus route has been established in partnership with the TPU to ensure that the bus route serves education establishments and major business centres.
The bus service strives to improve the mobility of women and provide them with improved access to jobs and education.
Ayesha Bano, member of the provincial legislative assembly and Secretary-General of the Women Legislative Caucus claimed that information technology can play a major role in ensuring vulnerable communities ‘ protection and that Safe Women App allows users to stay in touch with families while they are on the road.
“UN Women Pakistan, as the specialised agency for promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women, has worked together with KPITB on this mobile application to facilitate female commuters on Pink Sakura buses in two cities of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa,” said Zainab Qaiser Khan, head of sub-office UN Women K-P.
Women’s safety in public places is very important for their well-being as well as economic empowerment, she added.
