Population Labour Force and Employment

At the time of independence in 1947, 32.5 million people lived in Pakistan. By 2006-07, the population is estimated to have reached 156.77 million. Thus in roughly three generations, Pakistan’s population has increased by 124.27 million or has grown at an average rate of 2.6 percent per annum. While Pakistan has more mouths to feed, more families to house, more children to educate, and more people looking for gainful employment, the high population also represents an abundance of labour which can be used for productive purposes. The large population also represents a large potential market for goods and services. This large consumer base with increasing disposable income may attract even more foreign investment. The large population therefore represents a big opportunity for Pakistan to benefit from demographic dividend which can fuel Pakistan’s growth for the next fifty years. The interest in relationship between population change and economic growth has reignited in Pakistan which is experiencing declining fertility and mortality rates and therefore declining growth in population. Consequently, Pakistan is witnessing changes in age structure with proportion of working age population increasing and offering a life time window of opportunity to turn demographic transition into demographic dividend.