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According to official statistics (based on the labour force survey data), unemployment rates for women declined from 16.5 per cent in 2001-02 to 9.9 per cent in 2005-06. Women's participation in the labour force has also increased from 9.9 per cent in 2001-02 to 13.5 per cent in 2005-06. Even augmented labour force participation rates (to take into account economic activities carried out within house premises) have gone up from 26 per cent in 2001-02 to 30.2 per cent in 2005-06. But the unemployment rate, in the first instance, must be seen in relation to the rate of female participation in the labour. Seen in this light, the situation remains dismal despite slight improvements. Pakistani women today constitute only 20 per cent of the labour force. This is a bleak figure not only as we approach the seventh year of the new millennium, but because elsewhere in the South Asian region women are progressing much faster and contributing much more. In Bangladesh, the subcontinent's success story, the female labour participation rate (FLPR) is 56 per cent. Let us now examine the decline in the female unemployment rate. This would be a significant development depending upon the quality and conditions of the jobs that have been generated. This is important because if very low paying jobs have been created in very poor working conditions then this hardly constitutes a positive change. Here the evidence is mixed. The major portion of the new job creation and the decline in unemployment have taken place in the rural areas, mainly agriculture. And this increase in employment is in the category of unpaid family helpers. Clearly these are not high quality jobs and in all probability do not result in higher incomes and improved living conditions. The upshot of this is that even if things have marginally improved given the base figures there is still a very long path ahead. Women in Pakistan continue to face discrimination in the labour market and the challenge is to introduce and implement policy measures to rectify the situation. What are the gender dimensions of the Pakistani labour market? There are seven million employed women opposed to 35 million men. This yields a ratio of 1 to 5 in men's favour. Women also face underestimation in labour and other government surveys. This is due to problems in data collection such as inappropriate definition of economic activity, male surveyors who obtain information regarding working women from the male members of the family, questions seeking information on a single main activity and exclusion of the informal sectors. Female unemployment is much higher in rural areas than in urban areas. It is higher among educated women as compared to less educated women. It is higher in less developed provinces -- Balochistan -- as compared to Sindh and Punjab. It is higher among young women (15-24 years) than older women (30-39 years). According to a recent report of the Asian Development Bank: "In the cultural context of Pakistan, women's wage work is considered a threat to the male ego and identity and women's engagement in multiple home-based economic activities leads (to) under-remuneration for their work. Pakistani girls and women spend long hours fetching water, doing laundry, preparing food, and carrying out agricultural duties. Not only are these tasks physically hard and demanding, they also rob girls of the opportunity to study." The employment challenge, as a recent World Bank study shows, is highly discriminatory against women. Women's productivity in the labour market is hindered by socio-cultural and economic factors. Women are not given employment terms enjoyed by their male counterparts. Their occupational choices are limited, there are prejudices against them in the labour market and they have no support such as child care, transport and accommodation in the formal sector of the labour market. Women face numerous restrictions in their movements outside the home due to concerns about their security and reputation. Mobility restrictions directly undermine female access to medical care and education, opportunities to paid work, voting and other forms of political and community participation. By encouraging a safer environment a positive cycle of increased female participation in the labour market can be achieved. Women's work is considered inferior to males and this results in women being concentrated in the secondary sector of the labour market. Their work is low paid, low status, informal and lacks potential upward mobility. Young women are also finding it difficult to find jobs. The consequence is that they find low returns on their education investment. This discourages families from educating their female members. The incidence of poverty is higher among women headed households, particularly in rural areas. It is significantly linked with education, employment status, asset ownership and occupational choice. Decision-making and mobility do not differ between women belonging to the poor or non-poor households, though poverty does play a critical role in occupational choice and gender discrimination. Some measures have already been initiated to encourage self-employment and women entrepreneurship through the setting up of the First Women Bank and actions by the Pakistan Rural Support Programme and other NGOs with a measure of success but these still remain marginal in terms of their overall coverage and impact. The recently launched Pakistan Rozegar Scheme is apparently aimed at women and young people. It may also help improve the situation. But so far television coverage seems to show only young men filling in application forms for the loans available under the scheme. The majority of women work in agriculture or agriculture related activities. In 2005-06, 68.9 per cent of women as compared to 38 per cent of men are engaged in these activities. Nearly 36-38 per cent of economically active rural women work on their own family farms. The majority of women in the urban sector work in low-paying jobs. In urban areas 16 per cent of female workers are employed in the service sector followed by the manufacturing sector (14.7 per cent). Despite improvement in Pakistan's literacy rate since its independence, the country's overall literacy rate of 52.5 per cent in 2005-06 is still the lowest in the subcontinent. Withing the country, female literacy rates remain much lower than those for men even though general literacy rates have improved from 50 per cent in 2001-02 to 52.5 per cent in 2005-06. Despite this improvement, one of the highest population growth rates in the world, means that the number of illiterate Pakistanis has more than doubled since 1951. The number of illiterate women has tripled in this period. All this figure crunching reveals one worrying fact: Half of the country's population is illiterate and women account for 60 per cent of all illiterate people in Pakistan. But this general data conceals some some important aspects of the literacy scene. Vast divisions and strong gender disparities exist in educational attainment between rural and urban areas as well as among the provinces. In 2005-06, the literacy rate (for those aged 10 years and above) in urban areas was 68.9 per cent while in rural areas it was 43.6 per cent. It was only 29 per cent amongst rural women. There are also considerable inequalities in literacy rates in the different provinces, as well as between men and women. According to the findings of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2005-06, women have a 40.1 per cent literacy rate as compared to 64.5 per cent for men. In the LFS 2001-02 women had a 36.9 per cent literacy rate as compared to 62.2 per cent for men. In the Population Census 1998, female literacy rate was 32.0 per cent and the male literacy rate was 54.8 per cent. In the last six years, therefore, there has been a 6 per cent improvement in female literacy rates. There is one salient and disturbing pattern that must be pointed out while discussing female literacy rates in Pakistan. Despite the higher rate of female enrollment in 2005-06 at the primary, secondary and high school levels, the gender gap in literacy rate is widening in Pakistan. Of those without basic education opportunities, about 70 per cent are girls. This is primarily due to the high dropout rate among girls. In rural areas the numbers are even more discouraging. Only 3 per cent of 12-year-old girls in rural areas continue their education, compared with 18 per cent of boys of the same age. Fewer than 1 per cent of girls in the 14-year-old age group remain in shool compared with 7 per cent of boys of the same age. Finally, less than 3 per cent people in the age group 17-23 have access to higher education. Women greatly suffer by not having any opportunities to acquire higher education and attain professional or technical degrees. But what is most interesting and quite remarkable is that educational achievements of female students are higher as compared to male students at different levels of education! These glaring differences in literacy rates for men and women close many employment opportunities for the latter. But this is not the only discrimination that they face in employment. Outside the agricultural sector, the informal sector employs around 70 per cent of the labour force. In the informal sector women form the majority of the work force due to the migration of men to urban areas. The job opportunities available to them only in the informal sector intensifies women's exploitation, and standard labour legislation or legal protective measures do not cover their vulnerabilites. Women workers in the informal sector, especially home-based piece rate workers, work longer hours for low wages under conditions of job insecurity. What is the next step? Policy makers have to tackle discrimination against women on three fronts: education, mobility and health care. New schools need to be built particularly in rural areas but there again the problem is to find teachers. Investments in female middle and high schools are, therefore, important to ensure prospective teachers. Incentives to attract and retain girls in school could be designed to alleviate mobility restrictions for girls. For instance, school buses can be provided for girls. There should be increased coverage of primary heath care facilities, particularly in rural areas. Continuing low participation rates and high unemployment rates among women need urgent action, as these could act as a strong disincentive to investment in female education, which is the most powerful means of empowering women in Pakistan. The time has come to take advantage of the winds of change and build momentum on some of the positive developments that appear to be taking place in the female labour market in Pakistan today. But the challenge ahead must not be underestimated as much more remains to be done. The government must adopt a strong proactive policy stance and implement pro-women labour laws. At the same time local societal and cultural attitudes must be changed so that they stop holding back women from becoming active participants in the labour market of the new millennium. Courtesy: The News Pakistan |
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The latest official estimates confirm a startling development in Pakistan's female labour market. Over the last four years female unemployment rates have halved, female labour force participation rates have increased and overall poverty levels have declined. But the key question is: How accurately does this reflect the 'real' world situation for the female labour market? Are things really improving or is it just a statistical illusion? |
