Poverty in Pakistan has gone up over the last six years, with the latest estimates showing that 28.8% of the population is living in poverty in 2024-25.
The poverty rate was 21.9% in 2018-19. This means poverty has increased by nearly 6.9% during this period, based on findings from the 2024-25 survey. The rise has been seen across provinces, especially in Punjab and Sindh, Geo News reported citing official statistics.
What’s behind the surge in poverty in Pakistan?
“Owing to various factors – including three IMF stabilisation programmes over the past six years, the effects of Covid-19, commodity super-cycles, soaring inflation, lower GDP growth rates, two super floods and abandonment of wheat support prices – poverty levels in Pakistan have surged,” top official sources confirmed while speaking to The News on Thursday.
Official announcement of poverty figures expected
Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal is expected to officially announce the poverty figures for 2024-25, likely on Friday. Chairman of the Poverty Estimation Committee, Dr GM Arif, said that the committee has submitted its report and recommendations to the government. However, he refused to share the exact poverty rate when asked about it, Geo news reported.
Poverty has increased in Punjab, Sindh and KP, while Balochistan has seen a slight rise. At the national level, poverty has climbed from 21.9% in 2018-19 to 28.8% in 2024-25. In earlier years, poverty had been falling, but in 2024-25 the trend reversed, with a sharp rise of 6.9% over six years, the news outlet reported citing sources.
Formation of poverty estimation committee
According to a notification from Pakistan’s Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, the government formed a 17-member Poverty Estimation Committee after completing the Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) 2024-25. The committee was created to calculate national poverty and inequality figures, the report said.