POVERTY IN PAKISTAN Poverty is the state of deprivation relative to those standards of living enjoyed by others within the same society. OR in simple words we can say that poverty is the condition of not having the means to afford basic human needs such as clean water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. Half the world — nearly three billion people — lives on less than two dollars a day. The GDP of the poorest 48 nations (i. e. a quarter of the world’s countries) is less than the wealth of the world’s three richest people combined. Warren buffet, Carlos Slim, & Bill gates). Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names. Less than 1% of what the world spent every year on weapons was needed to put every child into school by the year 2000 and yet it didn’t happen. -1 billion children live in poverty. -640 million live without adequate shelter -400 million have no access to safe water -270 million have no access to health services. -10. 6 million Died in 2003 before they reached the age of 5.
The poor in Pakistan are not only deprived of financial resources, but they also lack access to basic needs such as education, health, clean drinking water, and proper sanitation. Limited access to education, health, and nutrition, undermines their capabilities, limits their ability to secure gainful employment, and results in income poverty and social exclusion An analysis of poverty describes that, Poverty in Pakistan has remained fairly stable during 90’s, from 29. 3% in 1993-94 to 32. % in 1998-99. Poverty is considerably higher in rural as compared to urban areas. According to Calculations by FBS poverty headcount in 1998-99 was 36. 3% and 22. 4% for rural and urban areas of Pakistan, respectively. Poverty incidences vary Significantly between provinces. NWFP has the highest rural as well as urban poverty Followed by Punjab. Balochistan data for 1998-99 shows relatively low poverty; however, Poverty in Balochistan is as high as in NWFP as in other years.
Poverty is strongly related to lack of basic needs, especially education and cultivable land. The poor have a higher dependency ratio, as households with a large number of children, and single earning member, are more likely to be poor. On average the poor have almost five household members less than 18 years of age, while the number for the non-poor is three. Average number of births by a poor woman (married and of age 15-49) is almost five, compared to four for a non-poor woman.
More than one third of the poor households are headed by aged persons who are dependent on transfer incomes, such as pensions and other forms of social support. Education is the most important factor that distinguishes the poor from the non-poor. The percentage of literate household heads is 27 in poor households while for non-poor households it is 52. The non-poor own 0. 84 acres of cultivable land per capita, while the poor own only 0. 27 acres per capita. In addition the poor are less able to diversify their agricultural production and are thus more susceptible to economic shock
