ISLAMABAD
\nThe caretaker Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives Muhammad Sami Saeed on Thursday said Pakistan was committed to the agenda of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Thailand last month.
\nHe made these remarks while addressing the launching ceremony of two reports jointly compiled by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE).
\n\u201cWe are committed to the population conference agenda and our delegation to the regional conference made a bit of contribution in it, said the minister while appreciated the research work carried out by the UNFPA and PIDE researchers, adding that \u201cPakistan is the first country in the region to delve into this kind of effort which is very useful for policymakers, academicians and researchers.\u201d
\nThe reports titled \u201cNational Time Transfer of Account (NTTA); and National Transfer of Account (NTA)\u201d have been meticulously developed by PIDE in close collaboration with the UNFPA. The primary objective of the NTA report is to elucidate the intricate linkages between population growth, evolving age structures, economic growth, public finances, and other pivotal facets of the macro-economy, addressing aspects of gender and generational equity. The NTA, however, has limitations in capturing unpaid work falling outside production boundaries.
\nThe study found that in Pakistan, men typically commence their working lives at the age of 10 and reach the peak of their earnings by the age of 49. However, their consumption frequently eclipses their income during both early and later years, a gap often compensated for by other household members who possess a surplus. In stark contrast, women consistently experience a trend where their consumption surpasses their income at all ages, primarily due to their limited participation in the labor force.
\nThe report explains that while men dominate formal market-based economic contributions, accounting for 78 percent of such activities, women take the lead in the informal non-market activities, frequently overlooked by traditional economic metrics. Women\u2019s per capita annual production value in non-market work significantly exceeds that of men, highlighting their critical role in household and caregiving activities and underlining their substantial yet often unrecognized contributions to the economy.
\nTo address this, the study introduced NTTA for valuing unpaid work and its methodology divides unpaid work into general household production, care work and learning activities. The Planning Minister said that the population demographics had changed and the related themes were \u2018very important\u2019 as Pakistan was a populous country and had a large youth bulge. \u201cSo, any analysis that captures the inter-generational dynamics is very useful and also the computation of the unpaid work that women contribute is also very important,\u201d he said.
\nFurthermore, the minister also highlighted the significance of the research work that had been done at the provincial level as \u201cWe have been struggling for many years to prepare provincial GDPs\u201d. He said the government would use these reports in the process of policymaking and development planning initiatives.
\nAbout the report regarding the gendered economy, the minister said these could make a valuable contribution to society in terms of family institutions and societal fabric and the economic well-being of the family and the country. \u201cThe report does well to confirm some of the generally known truths about the various aspects of this issue.\u201d He said it was a known fact that the burden of household responsibility fell equally on women and that had implications for women\u2019s participation in the labour market and overall economic development of the country.
\n\u201cThe report also confirms the generally known fact that there is a correlation between the division of unpaid work and economic status of the households,\u201d he added.
\nThe minister said the provincial variations in these situations were also very helpful in addressing the issues of regional disparities, allocation of resources, youth and general specific policies.
\n\u201cI feel that these reports are very useful and in due course of time, we will take advantage of the research that has been done,\u201d the minister remarked.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD The caretaker Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives Muhammad Sami Saeed on Thursday said Pakistan was committed to the agenda of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Thailand last month. He made these remarks while addressing the launching ceremony of two reports jointly compiled by the United Nations Population […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-374448","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n