Poverty in Pakistan: The saying that flour is wet in poverty…this saying is proving true for Pakistan. Struggling with cash crunch, huge debt and high inflation rate, the people of Pakistan are continuously falling below the poverty line. The World Bank has said that Pakistan’s economic situation is deteriorating. He has warned that more than one crore people could go below the poverty line in the cash-strapped country. This apprehension of the World Bank is based on the slow economic growth rate of 1.8 percent along with rising inflation, which has reached 26 percent in the current financial year. The World Bank in its half-yearly report on Pakistan’s Growth Outlook indicated that the country may miss achieving almost all key macroeconomic targets.
Pakistan may remain in loss for 3 years
The report said that Pakistan may fall short of its primary budget target. He may remain in loss for three consecutive years. This is contrary to the conditions of the International Monetary Fund. The Monetary Fund has essentially maintained a condition of surplus. Syed Murtaza Muzaffari, lead author of the report, said that although the recovery is widespread, it is still in its early stages. The efforts being made to eradicate poverty are not enough. The report said that economic growth is expected to remain stable at a modest 1.8 percent.
9.8 crore Pakistanis below poverty line
Nearly 98 million Pakistanis are already below the poverty line. With this the poverty rate remains at around 40 percent. The report highlights the risk of people living just above the poverty line falling below it. Under this, one crore people are at risk of falling below the poverty line. The World Bank said the poor and marginalized people are likely to benefit from windfall gains in agricultural production. But these gains will be offset by persistently high inflation and limited wage growth in high-employment sectors such as construction, trade and transportation.
Inflation rate above 30%
The report said that wages of daily wage workers grew by only five per cent during the first quarter of this financial year while inflation was above 30 per cent. The World Bank warned that the number of out-of-school children is expected to increase due to rising costs of living coupled with rising transportation costs. Also, this may cause delay in treatment in case of illness for the families who are somehow surviving.
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