Unemployment rate scales up to 5.7pc from 5.1pc in decade

KARACHI: Unemployment rate in Pakistan rose to 5.7 percent last year from 5.1 percent a decade ago with joblessness in females standing much higher than males, official data revealed on Friday.

Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) said unemployment rate constituted rising curve till 2011/12 when it was 5.7 percent, but the rate lost steam in the last three years.

“Males and females unemployment rates make the similar pattern, however the latter are higher than formers,” the PBS said in Employment Trends 2018.

“The distance between males and females unemployment rates does not seem to be shrinking during the period.”

Annual average unemployment rate stood at 5.5 percent for a decade. Unemployment rate stood at 5.8 percent in 2014/15, 5.6 percent in 2013/14, six percent in 2012/13, 5.7 percent (2010/11), 5.3 percent 2009/10 and five percent in 2007/08.

Unemployment rate in male stood at 4.9 percent in the last fiscal year as compared to 8.5 percent in female, 4.7 percent versus 9.2 percent in 2014/15, 4.6 percent as against 8.9 percent in 2013/14, 5.1 percent compared with 9.1 percent in 2012/13, 4.8 percent as opposed to 9 percent in 2010/11, 4.1 percent versus 9.2 percent in 2009/10, 4.2 percent as against nine percent in 2008/09, 4 percent versus 8.7 percent in 2007/08, and 4.2 percent in male population compared with 8.6 percent in female segment.

PBS data showed unemployment rate, calculated as a percentage of active population, was the highest 7.3 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa last year, followed by 5.7 percent in the Punjab, five percent in Sindh and four percent in Balochistan.

The highest female unemployment rate was, however, in Balochistan (17.3pc), followed by 11.8 percent in Sindh, 9.2 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 7.7 percent in the Punjab.

PBS said employment to population ratio declined a bit to 48.9 percent in 2017/18 from 49.8 percent in 2006/07 and remained in the proximity of 50 percent during the rest of the period.

The size of the employment ratio for males scaled down to 77.2 percent in 2017/18 from 79.6 percent in 2006/07. “Ratio of female employment ratio signify increasing trend during the period 2006/07 to 2014/15 and slightly declined in 2017/18.”

PBS said share of employment in informal sector slightly fell to 71.4 percent in 2017/18 from 71.5 percent in 2006/07. In males, the shares were 71.6 and 71.5 percent, respectively, while the shares of females were 69.9 and 70.7, respectively.

Share of agriculture sector in total employment charted a mildly increasing trend to 43.5 percent in 2010/11 from 42 percent in 2006/07 and ended up at the lower level of 37.4 percent in 2017/18. Share of males seems higher at 35 percent in 2006/07 and lowered at 29.6 percent in 2017/18.

Share of females, faring about two times higher than males, rose to 74.9 percent in 2012/13 from 71.4 percent in 2006/07 and followed downward trend till 2017/18.

Share of industry in total employment set out at 21.4 percent in 2006-07, but it moved up to 24 percent in 2017/18.

Share of males increased to 26 percent from 23.5 percent, while share of female increased to 16.6 percent in 2017/18 from 12.6 percent in 2006/07.

PBS further said share of services in total employment increased to 38.6 percent in 2017/18 from 36.6 percent in 2006/07 “with a sort of sagging curvature in the middle”. Share of males increased to 44.4 percent in 2017/18 from 41.5 percent in 2006/07.

The corresponding shares of females scaled down to 13.6 percent in 2014/15 from 16 percent in 2006/07, while it gained steam to reach 17.3 percent in 2017/18.