ISLAMABAD: Food insecurity remains widespread in Pakistan as only 19.5pc of households can always afford desired meals, while 30pc sometimes go without three meals a day.
These are the findings from the Pakistan Panel Household Survey (PPHS) 2024, the country’s only long-term, nationally representative household survey tracking economic and social change for more than two decades, conducted by the country’s renowned think-tank Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) and unveiled at a seminar titled “PPHS: Key Insights and Implications for Policymaking”, according to a press release here on Wednesday.
The event featured Dean of Research (PIDE) Dr Shujaat Farooq and was moderated by Dean Academics (PIDE) Dr Karim Khan.
Dr Farooq announced that 76 per cent of the households surveyed in 2010 were successfully re-tracked in 2024, an exceptional achievement in longitudinal research.
71pc parents cite financial constraints as main reason for school dropouts; antenatal care coverage increased by 28.5pc since 2001; stunting declined from 60 to 43pc
Supported by RASTA-DDR and conducted in collaboration with the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the PPHS expanded from 16 to 30 districts, now including major urban centres such as Lahore, Karachi, Hyderabad, and Peshawar. The 2024 round covers 8,621 households nationwide and is the first fully digital survey, conducted via tablets for real-time monitoring and improved data quality.
The 2024 wave also introduced several new research modules, including learning poverty, care work, disability, financial literacy, and a detailed child well-being and parenting section, along with modernised consumption categories such as “eating out”.
Inflation was identified by more than 60pc of households as the most severe shock impacting their livelihoods.
Education data from PPHS 2024 reveals both progress and persistent challenges. While literacy rate has improved, 34pc of Grade 3–8 students still cannot solve Grade-2 level division problems, highlighting severe learning poverty.
Affordability remains a key barrier, with 71pc of parents citing financial constraints as the main reason for school dropout. Middle- and matric-level dropout rates stand at 34pc and 21pc, respectively, underscoring significant inequalities in learning outcomes.
Labour market data shows mixed trends. Male labour force participation slightly declined from 80pc to 78pc, while female participation increased modestly from 23.7pc to 26.9pc over 14 years. Despite the small gain, women remain concentrated in agriculture and informal jobs, with limited access to higher-value sectors. Occupational mobility has also stagnated, as the shift from blue- to white-collar work remains minimal.
In terms of intergenerational mobility, the findings are encouraging. University graduates now make up 9pc of the younger generation compared to only 1pc of their fathers, showing progress in educational attainment.
Ownership of inherited parental homes increased from 58pc to 81pc, and half of surveyed families perceive themselves as financially better off than their parents.
On the health front, the survey highlights major progress. Antenatal care coverage has increased by 28.5 percentage points since 2001, reaching 80.9pc, while skilled birth attendance rose by 69.5 points to 88.5pc. Home births have dropped sharply to 11.6 pc and TT vaccination coverage reached 72.3pc, marking a 35-point improvement. However, regional disparities persist, particularly in Balochistan, where access to maternal healthcare remains limited.
Child malnutrition trends also show improvement with stunting declining from 60 to 43pc and underweight children dropping from 50 to 33pc.
The PPHS also paints a nuanced picture of poverty and inequality. Using the Cost of Basic Needs (CBN) Method, Pakistan’s poverty rate stands at 30.5pc, 36.6pc in rural areas and 17.8pc in urban areas. Rural poverty has declined from 46.1 to 37.5pc, and urban poverty from 41 to 23.4pc, yet income inequality has widened, with upper-income groups’ consumption rising faster than that of lower-income panel households. Analysis indicates that, with better inflation control, the poverty rate could have been lower by around seven percentage points.
Social protection coverage has improved significantly. Around 22 to 23pc of households now benefit from programmes such as Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and Zakat, up from 10pc in 2010, while 10 to 11pc have access to microfinance networks.
Additionally, around 60pc of households report engaging in charitable giving, though mostly through informal channels.
Moderator Dr Karim Khan commended the study’s methodological rigor, emphasising that its precise tracking of households and split families makes the PPHS an invaluable source for policy analysis.
PIDE officials announced that the PPHS 2024 micro-data would soon be made publicly available to researchers and students, alongside a 15-chapter, 200-page technical report prepared by RASTA.
Dr Farooq expressed optimism that this dataset would support “dozens of PhD theses and policy papers,” contributing to Pakistan’s evidence-based policy ecosystem.
Published in Dawn, October 9th, 2025
