Pakistan has experienced modest economic growth between 2009 and 2018, with per capita GDP rising at 1.85 per cent, on average. Despite this, the incidence of poverty persistently declined, with the national poverty headcount ratio falling from 36.8 per cent in 2011 to 24.3 per cent in 2016, with an especially pronounced decline in urban areas. Employment remained concentrated in the agricultural and services sectors – although it fell in the former and rose in the latter – with most women workers employed in agriculture.

The share of employment in industry rose by 3.6 percentage points, while it rose by 2.4 percentage points in the service sector during the decade. This was offset by a 6 percentage point fall in the share of agriculture in total employment. Labour productivity grew at the same rate as growth in GDP per capita, although productivity declined in the industrial sector. Real wages of paid employed persons grew, on average, at 3 per cent per year. In terms of education, limited progress was made in reducing the share of children between 5 and 17 years old who are not enrolled in school, which stood at 27 per cent in 2017–18.

The gender gap in out-of-school children narrowed slightly; however, considerable variations exist across provinces. For instance, more than 36 per cent of children were out of school in Sindh, compared to 22 per cent in Punjab and 11.7 per cent in Islamabad Capital Territory. While the adult literacy rate for persons over the age of 15 years increased – from 54 per cent in 2009–10 to 59 per cent in 2017-18 – a significant gender gap persisted in literacy. Just 48 per cent of women are literate, compared to over 70 per cent of men. With a net primary enrolment rate of 67 per cent, Pakistan has a long way to go to achieve universal primary education. In terms of health, some progress was made in improving life expectancy at birth, the infant and under-five mortality rates, and the proportion of fully immunized children between 12 and 23 months old.