PROJECT REPORT

SOFTWARE APPLICATION IN
BUSINESS
PROJECT REPORT
CURRENT POVERTY RATE IN
PAKISTAN

GROUP MEMBERS:

Areesha Nafees (64212)

Wajeeha Ali (64167)

Zainab Tahir (64166)

Sherebano Mustafa (64140)

SUBMITTED TO:

Sir Faiz Ahmed

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Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.....................................................................3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY....................................................................4
INTRODUCTION:.................................................................................5
BACKGROUND:....................................................................................8
CAUSES OF POVERTY IN PAKISTAN:........................................8
EFFECTS OF POVERTY IN PAKISTAN:....................................12
HISTORY..............................................................................................15
FINDINGS OF CURRENT POVERTY RATE IN PAKISTAN:....19
ANALYSIS OF POVERTY RATE IN PAKISTAN:........................30
SOLUTION:..........................................................................................32
CONCLUSION:....................................................................................34
REFERENCES:....................................................................................35

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First of all, we would like to thank Allah who has always guided us to work on the
right path of life. Without his grace, this project could not become reality. Now, we
are thankful to Sir Faiz Ahmed for providing us the opportunity and motivation to
gain knowledge through this self-learning project. It will also be beneficial and
helpful to us in our future.

Then I would like to add a few words of appreciation for all the group members
who have been a part of this project right from its inception. It would be
impossible to complete this project without their support, patience and guidance.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Poverty has been one of the biggest problems that Pakistan faces today. It is rightly
said that poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. Nearly 60 per cent
of the population of Pakistan lives in villages. According to an analysis, poverty
has increased roughly from 30% to 40% during the past decade. It means that 40
per cent of the country’s population is earning their livelihood below the poverty
line. In such condition people are depressed of their basic necessities of life.

21.0 % population is much poor and spending their lives below poverty line in
Pakistan. Poverty line refers to one dollar per day. Last year population below
poverty line was 23.9 %.

More than 12 million people were added to the poor in Pakistan between 1993 and
1999. The rising poverty was the result of poor governance and slow economic
growth.

In 2019-20, the GDP growth rate is expected to be close to 2.4%, therefore there
will be no increase in per capita income.

There is a real risk that the incidence of poverty could increase by almost 5
percentage points from the level of 35% in 2018-19. Therefore, by the end of
2019-20, the level of poverty in Pakistan could once again approach 40%.
Government should provide credit facilities and use labor intensives techniques of
production to reduce the poverty. Alone leadership is not enough for its solution.
People of Pakistan have too got responsibility with equal share.

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INTRODUCTION:
In Islam, poverty is a great curse and unfortunate. Our beloved Prophet Hazrat
Muhammad (PBUH) also prayed to Allah to save him (PBUH) from Poverty. 
Poverty is the state in which one lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of
money or material possessions. Poverty is said to exist when people lack the means
to satisfy their basic needs.

Definition:

“Poverty is a multi-dimensional trend

which is characterized by lack of income
and non-fulfillment of basic needs as well
as lack of access to social infrastructure.”

TYPES OF POVERTY:
These are the major types of poverty: 
1)      General Poverty
General poverty refers to the existence of poverty in almost all the sectors of
economy. As in case of Pakistan, 21.0 % population is much poor.
2)      Absolute Poverty
It is meant to represent a specific minimum level of income needed to satisfy
the basic physical needs of food, clothing and shelter in order to ensure survival.
3)      Cyclical Poverty
Cyclical poverty refers to poverty that may be widespread throughout a
population, but its occurrence itself is of limited duration.
4)      Collective Poverty
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Collective poverty involves a relatively permanent insufficiency of means to

make safe basic needs of life.
5)      Concentrated Collective Poverty
Cities or regions neglected by industry and in areas where agriculture or
industry is inefficient and cannot compete profitably, there are found victims of
concentrated collective poverty.
6)      Case Poverty
Case poverty refers to the inability of an individual or family to secure basic
needs even in social surroundings of general prosperity. This inability is generally
related to the lack of some basic quality that would permit the individual to
maintain himself.
7)      Poverty line
A level of personal or family income below which one is classified as poor
according to governmental standards - called also poverty level. In Pakistan
poverty line is a US Dollar per day.

Poverty refers to the state of being poor, including deficiency of capital and
lack of the means of providing material needs and comforts. In developing
countries poverty is common in all the regions.
The word poverty derived from Latin word pauper means poor. Poverty refers to
the condition of not having the means to afford basic human needs such as clean
water, nutrition, health care, clothing and shelter. Poverty is the condition of
having fewer resources or less income than others within a society or country, or
compared to worldwide averages. Poverty is one of the major social problems
which Pakistan is facing. It is one of the most important and sensitive issue not
only for Pakistan but for the whole world. Poverty can cause other social problems
like theft, bribe, corruption, adultery, lawlessness, injustice etc.

It is the fundamental duty and responsibility of the country to fulfill the basic needs
of its people. Basic needs of man comprises of shelter, food and clothing. When
these needs are not fulfilled they bring about problems termed as socio-economic
problems. Pakistan has also been suffering from these problems. The real issue is
not the presence of these problems in the society. But the extent to which they are
being paid attention and solved. When these problems are not met timely the

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results in the form of deviant behavior, drug abuse, smuggling, corruption, poverty,
illiteracy and many other social evils.

Poverty is a curse. Pakistan is a poor and underdeveloped country. Most of its

population lives in adverse circumstances. Some reports reveal that more than 40%
population of Pakistan lives below the line of poverty. The rising poverty is the
result of poor governance and slow economic growth. A large number of people in
our country do not have a proper place to live in. This miserable condition has
given birth to an increase in beggars and needy people.
Poverty has been one of the biggest problems that Pakistan faces today. It is rightly
said that poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. Nearly 60 per cent
of the population of Pakistan lives in villages. According to an analysis, poverty
has increased roughly from 30% to 40% during the past decade. It means that 40
per cent of the country’s population is earning their livelihood below the poverty
line. In such condition people are depressed of their basic necessities of life. Proper
education and medicine are becoming distant from them. They are forced to think
of their survival only of due to poverty and unemployment, parents instead of
sending their children to schools, prefer child labor for them. They make them do
so to support their family and use them as earning hands from the early age.

21.0 % population is much poor and spending their lives below poverty line in
Pakistan. Poverty line refers to one dollar per day. Last year population below
poverty line was 23.9 %.

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BACKGROUND:
CAUSES OF POVERTY IN PAKISTAN:
It is difficult to point out all causes of poverty in Pakistan but the major causes of
are given below:

 Government:

Government is not well aware of present

conditions of country. The policies of
government are based on the suggestions of
officials which do not have awareness about the
problems of a common man. After
implementation of the policies do not get effective result. After the failure of one
policy, government does not consider its failure and announces another policy
without studying the aftermaths of last one. Heavy taxes and unemployment
crushes the people and they are forced to live below poverty line. The suitable
medical facilities are not provided to people and they are forced to get treatment
for private clinics which are too costly.

 Education:

Education sector plays a very vital role in the progress of any country.
Unfortunately, the condition of education sector in Pakistan is very miserable. The
lack of quality education our country is unable of dealing with the challenges of
the 21st century. Due to poverty people are unable to afford quality education for
their children. In addition, government’s negligence is frustrating the situation
further. Even though various steps taken by different governments for the
promotion of education, literacy rate lingers at 56% over
the decade. Owing to low investment, government run
schools are poor of basic facilities like proper classrooms,
water and sanitation facilities, electricity. Private sector is
doing an admirable job in this regard. But the money
making objective of this sector, education has been beyond

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poor’s reach. The primary completion rate in Pakistan given by UNESCO is 33.8
% in females and 47% in males, which shows that people in the 6th largest country
of the world are unable to get the basic education.

 Overpopulation:

Pakistan is facing the dragon of overpopulation. The

growth rate of Pakistan is very high and is among
the highest in the world. Since 1947, the population
has become more than triple. Pakistan is almost
touching 180 million marks. Population expansion
has been a real issue of concern for all governments.
With limited resources it is very difficult to control
the growing population. There is a great economic
disparity among the people. Poor are committing suicides out of hunger while rich
are busy in buildup more and more wealth. These social problems directly affect
the masses. The massively increasing population has almost outstripped the
resources in production, facilities and in job opportunities.

 Unemployment:

Pakistan is poorly faced with the problem of unemployment. The existing

unemployment rate is 15%. Thousands of young doctors, engineers and other

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educated people are out of job. There are no opportunities for youth to utilize their
capabilities or abilities in right direction. Pakistan is facing the problem of brain
drain due to unemployment because we are unable to utilize their precious hands in
the progress of the country. The most horrible part is that it is rising every year it
will show to be risky for the economy of Pakistan. It has negative impact on
society. It creates frustration and revengeful attitude.

 Judiciary System:

Justice delayed is justice denied. Timely

justice is the core value of a welfare society.
It is the duty of the state to promote justice.
But in the case of Pakistan it has always been
a day dream for the poor masses. Since the
independence judiciary has been in prison at the hands of establishment. Weak
judiciary has been unable to redress the grievances of the masses. Under such
conditions people choice to violent actions and resolve their issues by extreme
methods.

 Poor Law And Order Situation:

Owing to poor governance, the government is losing control over law and order
situation. When individuals put themselves in front of institutions, they set a bad
example. Suicide attacks, target killing, robbery and other crimes have become
norm of the day. And government seems helpless in this regard.

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There are lot of problems regarding law and order. Terrorist attacks create
uncertainty in stock markets and people earning from stock are getting loss due to
which the whole country faces uncertain increase in commodity prices.

 Corruption:

Corruption has become a major threat to Pakistani society because of four

important reasons. First, the image of Pakistan has enormously suffered in the past
few decades or so as the corrupt practices while awarding contracts, the launching
of foreign funded projects and money laundering done by high level officials
earned a bad name for the country.

In 1996, transparency international a Berlin based

civil society organization, rated Pakistan as the
second most corrupt country in the world. The
report TI was a source of great shame for Pakistan
was it not shattered the country’s image but also
discouraged foreign donors to support Pakistan in
its developmental projects. When the culture of
greed resulting into taking commission from
foreign companies and agencies deepened, the trust and confidence of the world
diminished. According to TI’s national corruption perception NCP Survey 2010
there occurs widespread corruption in Pakistan from 195 billion rupees in 2009 to
223 billion rupees in 2010.

Some of the most corrupt institutions and areas in Pakistan identified by TI are:
police, power sector, land administration, communications, education, local
government, judiciary, health, taxation and custom. According to TI’s survey, there
has taken place manifold increase in corruption in the present government than the
previous one. Neither foreign national nor over-seas Pakistanis who may be
interested in investing in this country are simply discouraged when they encounter
large-scale corruption in the shape of bribery and kickbacks.

 Excess Imports:

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The import of Pakistan is greater than export. Big revenue is consumed in

importing good every year, even raw material has
to import for industry. If we decrease import and
establish own supply chains from our country
natural resources the people will have better
opportunities to earn.

 Foreign Investors:

Foreign investor comes to local markets. They invest millions of dollars in stock
markets and stock market gets rise in index. Then the investor withdraws his
money with profit and market suddenly collapses. The after math always is faced
by poor people.

EFFECTS OF POVERTY IN PAKISTAN:

 Malnutrition:

The most common effect of poverty is malnutrition and this effect is particularly
seen in children of poor families. People living in poverty they have no access for
highly nutritious foods. The healthiest foods are usually the most expensive, that’s
why family on a very small budget is much more likely to purchase food that is
less nutritious, simply people can afford. In other hand people in poverty are

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malnourished because they do not eat sufficient of anything. For some people
around the world, quality food is luxury.

 Child Labor:

The first and most immediate Effects of Poverty in Pakistani Society is that People
will not send their child to Schools. As we know that "CHILD IS THE FATHER
OF TOMORROW", if our child wasted in this way then not only our Society but
Country will face problems in the future. Today in Pakistan about 4 million
Children in the age group of 5-14 years are working (Federal Bureau of Statistics).

This is poverty which force them to work in the formative years at very risky
places i.e. Underground mines, work with live electrical wires over 50 V, Cement

2. De-track from Moral and Religious values

"No man can worship God or love his neighbor on

an empty stomach." (Woodrow- T. Wilson)

From the above quotation we can very easily

understand that what people are doing in the state
of Poverty. They did not care of the Moral or
Religious value. What is good for them is that which satisfy their needs and
necessities.

 Crimes And Violence:

Crime and violence is the direct Effect of Poverty in Pakistan. The most common
form of human trafficking is for prostitution (violence), which is largely fueled by
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poverty. According to a survey, most of poor men violence on their wives for
income purposes. They force their women family members to earn something even
by selling their bodies. Street crime is also the ultimate Effect of Poverty in
Pakistan.

 Health Related Problems:

Poor people are suffering from so

many diseases. They haven't enough
resources for treatment. This is the
reason that Pakistan is ranked 135th
out of 194 countries in the Index of
Life Expectancy at the time of Birth.
In Pakistan the life Expectancy rate
at the time of Birth is very low i.e. 65 years. Whereas, in western countries it is
80+ years i.e. Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, Switzerland, Iceland etc.

HISTORY
It is generally accepted that the declining trend in poverty in Pakistan during the
1970s and 1980s was reversed in the 1990s. The incidence of poverty increased
from 26.6 percent in FY1993 to 32.2 percent in FY1999 and the number of poor
increased by over 12 million people during this period. Since FY1999, economic
growth has slowed further, development spending has continued to decline, and the

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country has experienced a severe drought. It is therefore highly likely that the
incidence of poverty in Pakistan today is significantly higher than in FY1999.

Poverty in Pakistan has historically been higher in rural than urban areas. Poverty
rose more sharply in the rural areas in the 1990s, and in FY1999 the incidence of
rural poverty (36.3 percent) was significantly higher than urban poverty (22.6
percent). Inequality also increased in Pakistan during the 1990s, in both urban and
rural areas, which enhanced the negative impact on poverty of the slowdown in
growth during this period. While agriculture is the predominant activity in rural
society, a substantial proportion of the rural labor force, estimated at more than 40
percent, depends entirely on non-farm activities. The growth of non-farm activities
appears to have been severely affected by low economic growth, decline in public
sector development spending, and lower worker remittances during the 1990s.

In line with the national picture, poverty in the provinces (apart from Balochistan
for which the poverty estimates were considered to have been affected by sample
selection issues) also registered an increase between FY1993 and FY1999. In this
period, the incidence of poverty in the Punjab increased from 25.2 percent to 33.0
percent; in Sindh from 24.1 percent to 26.6 percent; and in North West Frontier
Province (NWFP) from 35.5 percent to 42.6 percent.

There is very limited documentation on the gender dimensions of poverty;

however, it is clear that the gender discriminatory practices prevalent in Pakistani
society shape men's and women's choices and life opportunities differently.
Women suffer from poverty of opportunities throughout their life cycle. In
particular, women's access in the labor market in Pakistan is determined by rigid
gender role ideologies, social and cultural restriction on women's mobility and
integration in the work place, segmented labor market and employers gender biases
that attach a lower value to female labor due to their family responsibilities.
Female labor force participation rates in Pakistan are exceptionally low at just 13.7
percent, compared to 70.4 percent for men. In addition, the majority of women in
the formal sector of the economy are concentrated in the secondary sector of the
segmented labor market,

The last four decades can be grouped into two broad periods with respect to
poverty trends. The first period is from FY1964 to FY1988, while the second
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covers the years from FY1988 to FY1999 (the last year for which data is
available). During the first period, poverty declined in the urban areas until
FY1970, but increased in the rural areas leading to an increase in overall poverty in
the country. Subsequently, between FY1970 and FY1988, poverty declined in both
rural and urban areas. A number of factors, including the green revolution, increase
in employment due to a boom in the housing and construction sectors, as well as
rapid expansion of the public sector, and the inflow of workers' remittances from
the Middle East contributed to poverty reduction during this period.

During the second period, data from various studies indicates that the incidence of
poverty increased from 22 - 26 percent in FY1991 to 32 - 35 percent in FY1999 as
4 shown in Table 2.1. As mentioned earlier, most of the increase in poverty in this
period seems to have taken place between FY1997 and FY1999, a period of slow
growth and macroeconomic instability in Pakistan. Since FY1999, growth has
slowed even further, the fiscal squeeze has intensified, development spending has
declined, and the country has experienced a severe drought. It is highly likely,
therefore, that the incidence of poverty in Pakistan now is higher than in FY1999.

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Information on income distribution, often regarded as an indicator of relative

deprivation, suggests that inequality increased after FY1997, in both urban and
rural areas, with income distribution in urban areas being consistently more
unequal than rural areas (Figure 2.1). Inequality also increased in all four provinces
(Figure 2.2), except for a transitory decline in Punjab and Sindh between FY1994
and FY1997, with FY1999 being clearly the most unequal year in all provinces. In
FY1997, the income share of the bottom 20 percent of households had declined to
6.9 percent, from 7.9 percent in FY1987, and the income share of the bottom 40
percent of households declined from 20 percent to 18 percent. During the same
period, the ratio of the share of the top quintile to that of the bottom quintile also
increased to 6.5 from 5.2 for all areas.

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FINDINGS OF CURRENT POVERTY RATE IN

PAKISTAN:

Although great strides have been made, millions of Pakistanis remain vulnerable to
falling into absolute poverty.

Pakistan has made remarkable progress in reducing absolute poverty. Fifty million
fewer people lived in poverty in 2011 than in 1991 and  the share of the poor living
on less than $1.25 a day plummeted from 66.5% in 1987 to 12.7% in 2011.
Despite these advances, the number of Pakistanis vulnerable to falling into poverty
remains high and the recent series of natural disasters that have hit Pakistan will
slow future progress. 

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Impressive progress, yet problems persist

While absolute poverty levels have substantially decreased, more than half of
Pakistan’s population – almost 90 million people – was still living on less than $2 a
day in 2011.However, the latest income poverty data has raised caution over the
accuracy of the 2011 poverty estimates.

Figure 1: Number of poor people in Pakistan, 1987 – 2011

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators. Poverty lines are in 2005
international dollars.

While the number of people living under $1.25 a day plummeted, the number of
people living under $2 has barely declined and those under $2.50 actually
increased

Income growth and income inequality are key

Income growth in Pakistan has been the main driver of poverty reduction,
according to a World Bank report. Pakistan’s Gini coefficient and Palma ratio (the
ratio of income held by the top 10% compared to income held by the bottom 40%)
have fluctuated over time, but has followed a general downward trend, indicating
that income inequality has declined. The Benazir Income Support Program may be
partly responsible for this improvement. Unlike its predecessors, the program
transfers money to the female head in each household, the idea being to increase
women’s empowerment. The BISP significantly increased the amount of social
welfare the Pakistani government was spending on the poor. Through a
combination of continued economic growth, income support programs and large
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inflows of workers’ remittances, consumption growth of the poorest 40% has

managed to keep pace with the rest of Pakistan’s population in recent years.  

Overall, Pakistan has done well in converting economic growth into poverty

reduction (see Figure 2 below). But stronger and more sustained growth is needed
to continue reducing poverty in order to reach the poorest of the poor. Equitable
income distribution is important, as it can influence the effect of growth on poverty
reduction: if income inequality is high, economic gains are more likely to accrue
accrue to the wealthy with little left for the poor. If income distribution were more
equitable, the poor would gain more from the country’s economic growth, allowing
them to consume more and build up enough savings to develop assets such as
education and housing.

Figure 2: Poverty headcount ratio and GDP per capita growth in Pakistan,
1987-2011

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

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Differences across provinces have narrowed, but urban / rural differences

remain large

Poverty has steadily declined even when income growth was volatile in the 1990s.
Growth in the new millennium did not alter the pace of poverty reduction,
demonstrating that the responsiveness (or elasticity) of poverty to growth has
declined. Going forward, even stronger growth, coupled with direct interventions,
may be needed to achieve further falls in poverty.

Provincial poverty data indicate that poverty rates have converged across the
country. According to a World Bank report, in 1999, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had a
much higher poverty rate (41%) than other provinces in Pakistan. Next highest
were Punjab (30%), Sindh (26%) and Balochistan (22%). The poverty data from
2011 shows a marked improvement: Balochistan province had the highest poverty
rate (17.7%), followed by KPK (14%), Punjab (13.7%) and Sindh with the lowest
rate (12%).

Urban/rural differences remain pronounced, however, with 15% of the rural

population living in poverty compared to only 7% of the urban population. On the
multidimensional poverty map created by worldpop.org.uk (see Figure 3 below),
most green areas (lower levels of poverty) are major towns and cities, while red
regions (higher levels of poverty) correlate with mostly rural areas.

Poor data makes for poor policy

Pakistan has its own national poverty line, measured by calculating the basket of
goods that meet the minimum number of calories for an adult. The line is adjusted
for inflation using the Consumer Price Index, which does not place adequate
weight on food prices, since the poor spend proportionately more on food than
non-food items. Pakistan’s Bureau of Statistics does not collect CPI data from rural
areas, which means that there is one uniform poverty line for rural and urban
households, even if they spend different amounts to meet their minimum

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requirement of calories.  Furthermore, there has not been a census in Pakistan since
1998, meaning the population weights and sample sizes become increasingly
imprecise. These apparent flaws in the methodology have led to some skepticism
over the Bureau of Statistics’ latest poverty data. The larger issue is that if the
government cannot collect reliable poverty data, then it cannot be sure of whether
its poverty eradication policies are achieving the desired results.

Non-income measures of poverty – including education and gender parity – are

weak

Inequality in Pakistan is much higher in non-income terms. Secondary education

completion rates were 26.6% in 2011, up from 18.6% in 1999, but still very low
compared to other developing countries with similar income per capita. Gender
parity in education is slowly being achieved, though in Balochistan, parity in
primary and secondary education fell in 2002-2012. At the start of 2015, Pakistan
is not on track to attain the Millennium Development Goal for gender parity in
education. Moreover, even if improvements in women’s access to education
continue, barriers to employment are impeding efforts to lift women out of poverty
with only 20% female labor force participation in 2010 compared to 50% for men.

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Foreign aid has been massive, but it has not always been well spent

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Aid Data provides geocoded data on aid projects in order to reveal which regions
of a country are underserved, as well as aggregate information on the size of aid,
foreign direct investment, and remittance inflows into a country. While some of
Pakistan’s aid projects have already been mapped, Aid Data also applies purpose
and activity codes to data drawn from the OECD’s Creditor Reporting Systems
which allows for a simple comparison of what types of poverty related projects
have been prominent (see Figure 4 below).

Figure 4: Total commitments to poverty related projects by sector from

multilateral and bilateral donors, 1952-2012 (constant 2011 $)

Cumulatively, the energy sector has been the largest sector recipient of
development related aid, which is not surprising given Pakistan’s chronic problems
with reliable electricity supplies. Health and education do not get as much attention
as they probably should, given their historically poor performance and the
likelihood that investment in these two would achieve the biggest payoffs
for poverty reduction and economic growth.

Independent evaluation reports from the World Bank and Asian Development

Bank have been critical of vast amounts of aid to Pakistan that have been not as
effective as expected due to poor planning, misplaced incentive structures and
failure to understand how social and institutional norms can impede progress.
Moreover, fluctuations in foreign assistance – based largely upon the geostrategic
interests of major donors – may have made long-term planning extremely difficult.

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Poverty headcount ratio at $5.50 a day is the percentage of the population living on
less than $5.50 a day at 2011 international prices. As a result of revisions in PPP
exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with
poverty rates reported in earlier editions.

 Pakistan poverty rate for 2015 was 75.40%, a 4.1% decline from 2013.

 Pakistan poverty rate for 2013 was 79.50%, a 3.9% decline from 2011.
 Pakistan poverty rate for 2011 was 83.40%, a 1.6% decline from 2010.
 Pakistan poverty rate for 2010 was 85.00%, a 1.1% decline from 2007.

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Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty line (% of population) in Pakistan was

reported at 24.3 % in 2015, according to the World Bank collection of
development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Pakistan -
Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty line (% of population) - actual values,
historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on
April of 2020.

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National poverty rate is the percentage of the population living below the national
poverty line. National estimates are based on population-weighted subgroup
estimates from household surveys. 

International Organizations Reports about poverty in Pakistan

 UNDP (United Nations Development Program) Report

According to a UNDP report, 65.5 percent population of Pakistan earns less than
2$ per day.

 SPDC (Social Policy Development Centre) Report

According to the SPDC, 88 percent of Baluchistan’s population, 51 percent of

NWFP, 21 percent of Sindh and 25 percent of Punjab’s population is prey to
poverty and deprivation.

 World Bank Report

According to the 2011 statistics of the World Bank, due to the global financial
recession poverty ratio is increased especially of USA and the EU countries have
pushed millions of people around the world into deeper poverty. Almost 40% of
107 developing countries are highly exposed to the poverty. Pakistan is ranked
among the 43 countries who are most exposed to poverty.

 Asian Development Bank Report

According to the ADB report, poverty is spreading in Pakistan due to the rising
population, Pakistan’s internal situation, agriculture backwardness, unequal
income distribution, defiance expenditure, and increase in utility charges and rise
in unproductive activities.

 Pakistan’s Planning Commission Report

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Pakistan’s Planning Commission (2011), poverty rate has jumped from 23.9 to
37.5 percent in the last three years. The commission has estimated that in 2007
there were 35.5 million people living below the poverty line but in 2010 their
number increased to over 64 million.

ANALYSIS OF POVERTY RATE IN

PAKISTAN:

At the end of two years of the current government, 18 million more people may
slip into abject poverty due to low economic growth and double-digit food
inflation.
The national poverty ratio, which was 31.3% in June 2018, would sharply jump
to over 40% by June 2020. In absolute terms, people living in poverty will
increase from 69 million in June 2018 to 87 million by June 2020, indicating 26%
increase in poverty or an addition of 18 million people in first two years of the
current government.

Eight million people have already been added to the ranks of the poor by the end
of the first year of the current government. 10 million more people will slip
below the poverty line by the end of the current fiscal year.

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The situation is very alarming due to an economic growth rate that is close to the
population growth rate and an exponential increase in prices of perishable food
items.

The country was exiting a severe balance of payments crisis which had its own
implications. Current government accelerated the poverty alleviation measures
aimed at protecting the poor and vulnerable people from the adverse impact of
macroeconomic adjustments.

The government’s decision to simultaneously increase taxes, energy tariffs and

devaluation of currency contributed to the increase in poverty. The formal
government’s decision to keep the rupee-dollar parity stable kept the inflation
under check. The current government is implementing probably the toughest
International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme of the country’s history aimed at
overpowering fiscal and external accounts challenges.

By June next year, four out of every ten Pakistanis will be poor. At the end of the
formal government, three out of ten Pakistanis were living in poverty when the
poverty ratio had been estimated at 31.3%.

The food inflation was recorded at 16.6% in cities and 19.3% in rural areas in
November over a year ago, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.

The official poverty figures are missing since 2014-15 – a year after start of the
last IMF programme.

The incidence of poverty fell from 36.8% in 2015 to 31.3% in 2017-18. The
decline of 5.5 percentage points implied that almost six million people were taken
out of poverty in these three years.

The year 2018-19 has, unfortunately, witnessed a change in the trend. The per
capita income growth was only 0.9% and more recent estimates indicated that it
may have been even lower.

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There was an increase in the incidence of poverty by 3.7 percentage points, from
31.3% in 2017-18 to 35% in 2018-19. This implies that almost eight million
people fell below the poverty line in 2018-19.

In 2019-20, the GDP growth rate is expected to be close to 2.4%, therefore there
will be no increase in per capita income.

There is a real risk that the incidence of poverty could increase by almost 5
percentage points from the level of 35% in 2018-19. Therefore, by the end of
2019-20, the level of poverty in Pakistan could once again approach 40%.

SOLUTION:
Policies regarding poverty reduction Marshaled by different government could
not calculate the desire results. Crudely speaking, this is the gravest problem
being faced by Pakistani nation, if not handled with diligent care and implicit
faith, will swell and devour the entire mechanism of the state. For a welfare
state to get stronger, policies as regards development of poor strata should be
the top of the checklist’s behold a time when we shall be steadily hauling our
downtrodden economy towards heights, provided that we chalk out such
policies that not only project the welfare of effected spots but also transpose
their outlook .I propose following measures for extermination of this menace

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1. Promote industrialization

2. Replacement of the traditional agricultural equipment with new scientific

equipment in order to increase the yield.

3. Establishment of justice and equality

4. Equal distribution of resources

6. Merit should be the upshot strategy in all walks of life

7. Elimination of discriminatory policies

6. Controlling of inflation and other economic indicators and regulators.

8. Developing investment friendly environment

9. Giving more feasibilities and concessions to the foreign investors

10. Dumping extremism and feudalism

11. Establishing more and more technical institute in order to get people well
skilled.

12. Prevalence of education

13. Provision of job opportunities

14. Division of agricultural lands among tenants.

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CONCLUSION:
Leadership has got central importance here; with proper planning and
good government policies the problem can be solved. All they need to do is to
appoint competent and well qualified economists to help them tackle this issue
and obviously their sincerity for its solution cannot be ignored as well. A
country economy is the backbone of its country with its solution when it is
saved many problems will automatically. Poverty is not bad but to remain poor
and to accept poverty is really bad. In Pakistan, poverty is increasing day by day.
Effective steps of government are required to reduce it. Government should
provide credit facilities and use labor intensives techniques of production to reduce
the poverty. Alone leadership is not enough for its solution. People of Pakistan
have too got responsibility with equal share. People need to cooperate fully with
government and should be sincere with their own country and put all their
energies for eradication of poverty.

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REFERENCES:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_Pakistan
2. https://nation.com.pk/04-Jul-2019/poverty-in-pakistan
3. https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/PAK/pakistan/poverty-rate
4. https://tradingeconomics.com/pakistan/poverty-headcount-ratio-at-national-
poverty-line-percent-of-population-wb-data.html
5. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
24046177_A_Sectoral_Analysis_of_Poverty_in_Pakistan
https://www.aiddata.org/blog/poverty-in-pakistan-numerous-efforts-many-
numbers-not-enough-results
6. https://mettisglobal.news/poverty-rate-in-pakistan-falls-from-64-3-to-29-5-
world-bank
7. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
269704774_Determinants_of_Poverty_in_Pakistan
8. https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/454891-poverty-and-pakistan

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