Overview of labor force and unemployment in Pakistan, with particular focus on female participation and youth unemployment issues in the country.

1. F O R C I R C U L AT I O N
What are the issues with employment
in Pakistan?
Macro Pakistani

2. 2
Labor Force Participation and employment for females in Pakistan is low
5.8%
Source: Labour Force Survey 2017-18

3. 3
Unemployment has risen slightly over the years and gender gap reduced
Source: Labour Force Survey 2017-18

4. 4
Female participation falls from lower to higher quintiles and from rural to urban
Source: PBS, HIES 2015-16
# of earners per HH (Total) # of earners per HH (Urban) # of earners per HH (Rural)
Male Female

5. 5
Youth unemployment is particularly high in Pakistan especially for females
Labor Force Participation (%) Unemployment rate (%)
Age Group Total Male Female
10-14 8.2 9.8 6.4
15-19 32.6 47.6 15.6
20-24 52.5 84.6 23.3
25-29 57.1 96.1 24.7
30-34 60.1 98.1 26.6
35-39 61.7 98.3 27.9
40-44 63.1 98.4 28.0
45-49 61.5 97.4 26.2
50-54 63.1 96.0 25.9
55-59 58.9 91.7 23.4
60+ 33.6 51.3 11.5
Age Group Total Male Female
10-14 9.3 12.6 3.4
15-19 10.4 11.6 6.5
20-24 11.6 10.5 15.2
25-29 6.5 4.1 14.4
30-34 4.4 2.0 11.9
35-39 1.6 1.5 2.0
40-44 1.9 1.8 2.1
45-49 2.3 2.2 2.8
50-54 3.8 3.1 6.6
55-59 5.1 4.4 7.7
60+ 4.5 3.9 7.9
Source: Labour Force Survey 2017-18