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Pakistan's Punjab province has witnessed numerous education reforms in recent years. Many of these reforms have been aimed at improving the well-documented low levels of learning by focusing on improving teaching quality. The rhetoric suggests that government schools, particularly those in rural areas with a more disadvantaged pupil base, are especially ineffective at imparting learning. This paper seeks to investigate whether children in rural Punjab are learning literacy and numeracy over the course of a year, and if so, are some pupils progressing more than others. Using recently collected data, it finds that children in our sample are making progress. Variation in progress is found to be greater within schools rather than across them. The competence and qualifications of a teacher also makes a significant difference to a child's academic progress. The paper further finds differential progress for rich and poor students within schools, suggesting an important role for education policy to put in place targeted support towards those from disadvantaged backgrounds to ensure improvements in their learning keep pace with their peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to provide a detailed demographic description of poverty in Pakistan with an attempt to highlight those segments of the poor who can be aided to transition out of extreme poverty through appropriate policy measures. Data are collected from the Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) for the years 1985–2016 and captures falling poverty, gender-wise division of the employed and unemployed, type of employment (self-employed, unpaid workers, employers, employees) by gender, labour participation of vulnerable age groups, as well as unemployed widows. The paper discusses the effectiveness of conditional (CCT) and unconditional (UCT) cash transfer programs across the world and using data indicators, highlights the appropriate target groups in need of such intervention in Pakistan. The existing components of BISP are discussed, with policy recommendations targeted to enhance its impact by focusing UCTs on the most vulnerable segments. CCTs can be used to improve health and education outcomes; given Pakistan's lagging performance, illiteracy among youth, infant and maternal health are of particular consideration. Cash transfers can be made conditional, subject to regular health checkups for mothers and children and mandatory school attendance to improve these outcomes. The paper further suggests an extension of the program to provide short-term financial relief to the temporarily unemployed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to estimate the potential for trade between India and Pakistan, assuming a normalized neighborly relationship. We used an augmented gravity model with a panel data for 21 years. This paper utilizes the panel fixed effects decomposition and Hausman and Taylor estimation methods to estimate the effect of time-invariant variables on the volume of potential trade. The present volume of trade is dwarfed by our estimates of the potential trade. This seems to ratify the expectation of businesses on both sides. It would appear that the development of a bilateral relationship between India and Pakistan, in the context of regionalization, should be motivated by strong economic considerations. It would include sector-driven as well as market-access approaches. While the theoretical background appears subtle, strategic market consequences arise from the dynamics of regional market structure. Assuming a positive relationship between trade and per capita income, here is a peace dividend that is difficult to ignore in a regional environment of oppressive poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the dimensions of vulnerability, this paper empirically investigates the inability of rural dwellers to cope with negative income shocks. A variable coefficient regression model is applied to a two-period household panel dataset collected in the North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan, an area with high incidence of income poverty and low human development. The empirical model allows for a different ability to smooth consumption, approximated by a linear function of households’ attributes, and controls for the endogeneity of observed changes in income, using qualitative information on subjective risk assessment. Estimation results show that the ability to cope with negative income shocks is lower for households that are aged, landless and do not receive remittances regularly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents' roles in their children's education are significant in terms of outcomes for the child. As research on parental involvement in children's education has often been conducted in high-income countries, there is a deep need for more research on parental involvement in contexts of disadvantage. Set in the context of socioeconomically disadvantaged communities in rural Pakistan, this study sought to explore parents' lived experiences of their involvement in their children's education and gain insight into the barriers they encountered in assisting their children's learning. A qualitative research design was employed. In total, 12 parents (6 mothers and 6 fathers) of school-age children in rural Pakistan were interviewed about their views on involvement with their children's education. Data were analysed thematically, using a narrative inquiry approach. Through in-depth analysis of the data, two distinct narratives of parental involvement were identified: (1) a narrative of hope and trust-building, indicating parents' confidence in state schools and their striving for a better future for their children, and (2) a narrative of dissatisfaction and inequality, reflecting frustration arising from factors including parents' socioeconomic situations, concerns about schools and the influence of local societal norms. It was evident that, despite hardship, the parents wanted their children to be educated and regarded education as a path to improving prospects. The findings broaden understanding of parents' involvement in their children's education within socioeconomically disadvantaged rural communities by revealing and highlighting the diverse, often context-related barriers the parents encountered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has been an important procedure, ever since its introduction. Despite being a life-saving treatment there remains a great deal of public concern about ECT's continued use. Pakistan is a low-income country and psychiatry in Pakistan is continuously in the evolutionary process. Electroconvulsive therapy provides a welcome relief from the suffering of various mental illnesses for many patients, though its standards and practice vary remarkably. This paper gives a brief overview of ECT practice in a private outpatient clinic in Lahore, Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indoor air pollution, due to household solid fuel use, is responsible for a significant burden of disease in developing countries. Fuel choice is often associated with household income. However, many other socio-economic and environmental factors also influence the choice of fuel and the resultant indoor air pollution exposure. The aim of this paper is to assess the role of poverty on indoor air pollution in Pakistan through fuel choice. Furthermore, a multinomial logit model has been used to predict the determinants of fuel choice. The results indicate that although poverty makes a significant contribution, other factors such as household location and area, household size, low level of human capital, asset ownership structure and access to basic utilities are the important correlates of fuel choice. Knowledge relating to the proximate determinants for fuel choice is crucial to inform policy and can play a pivotal role in designing sustainable intervention strategies to reduce the risk of exposure to indoor air pollution in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The present study computes multidimensional poverty and compares it with unidimensional estimates of poverty for the district of Mandi Bahuddin in the Punjab province of Pakistan for the years 2010 and 2014. By employing the Foster, Greer and Thorbecke (FGT) and Alkire-Foster Methods, the incidence, severity and depth of unidimensional and multidimensionality poverty was estimated. We found an increase in absolute and relative poverty levels in 2014 as compared to 2010. The multidimensional poverty in terms of household assets has also increased over time. However, the relative proportion of educational and health poverty towards MPI remains higher, thereby calling for a holistic approach to identify multidimensional poverty in the social sector. A comprehensive policy dossier needs to be framed for designing effective poverty alleviation and social welfare programmes in the Punjab, Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inequality matters for poverty reduction. However, it is often unclear what policy could do to change the distribution of income as to date there is little quantitative evidence about the household characteristics that determine the level of income inequality and its changes over time. This paper sets out to identify these determinants by adapting a regression-based inequality decomposition technique and applying it to panel data from rural Pakistan. Land ownership is key to explaining the level of inequality, but not its changes. In contrast, higher education drives changes, but not the level of inequality. Household location affects both, reflecting growing differences in market access across regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In rural and low-income urban households, energy is 'women's business': women are responsible for providing energy, and use it for domestic chores and productive activities. However, the poor quality fuels many women use contribute to their time poverty, ill health, and level of drudgery. Despite these negative impacts, energy policy remains gender-blind. This can be attributed to the invisibility of women's needs to energy planners, stemming from a lack of appropriate gender-analysis tools to meet the particular data requirements of the energy sector. This article analyses why standard gender tools do not provide appropriate gender-disaggregated energy data, and describes a set of tools that have been developed for that purpose. The paper concludes with an evaluation of recent experiences testing the tools in Pakistan, India, and Nepal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, taken from a presentation given to the Women In Development Europe (WIDE) Conference 2005, I consider the situation in Pakistan, within the general context of South Asia as a whole, and focus on the questions that confront feminists today. These questions, I believe, may be relevant to women activists not only in the South but also elsewhere. I discuss the activities of feminists who are engaging in advocacy for gender equality in Pakistan. This is an uphill task, but it has nevertheless resulted in some achievements. Not least of these is Pakistani women’s success in bringing women’s rights to the attention of both policy makers and the general public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic Wellbeing Index (EWI) builds upon poverty measurement by shifting the unit of measurement to the individual and accounting for the barriers to wellbeing faced by persons with disabilities. Surveying Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) of Pakistan and EWI reveals that the measures were less likely to agree when the respondent was a person with disability. The discrepancy suggests that MPI may be susceptible to understating individual poverty faced by persons with disability. We conclude that further research is required to improve the veracity of EWI, and suggest that EWI could also help capture individual poverty faced by other marginalized groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural poverty is often discussed in combination with spatial inequality where rural poor face worse problems with diverse remedies in comparison to urban poor. The present study aims to find out area-level effects and possible determinants of rural poverty based on data from the Rural Household Panel Survey of Pakistan Round-1 (2012). The multilevel binary logistic model is used to integrate concurrent individual and district-level variables to explore area-level effects on poverty. A two-level multilevel model is used for the analysis of the poverty status of 4804 respondents nested in 19 districts. Individual-level variables included in the model are education, socioeconomic status, and spending behaviour. It is found that approximately 60% of individuals of the overall population were found poor, and district-level effect accounts for 7% variations in poverty. A particularly significant ratio of poor is found for people who attained deeni madrassa/religious education or no education at all. Poverty existence is significantly associated with spending behavior and socioeconomic status. The persons with relatively middle/high socioeconomic status and successful educational achievement but a lacking attitude toward spending money are considered poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More than 115 million women across the world are borrowers of microfinance loans. However, there is concern that women from poor backgrounds who take loans may suffer from multiple challenges of physical and mental health burdens. In this qualitative study we aimed to identify the types of health challenges faced by active women borrowers of microfinance loans. Open ended questions were asked from 442 women across seven cities and four provinces of Pakistan. Categories were developed through the content analysis approach using NVIVO. We have been able to identify thirteen different health challenges faced by poor women borrowers under two broad headings of "environmental factors" and "healthcare delivery system." We recommend the introduction and expansion of different health and social development services by microfinance provider's to support the health needs of poor women clients. Women also need support from the Government of Pakistan in improving access to education, health coverage, and formal sector work opportunities. Our study implies increased health policy support for disadvantaged women borrowers of microfinance across the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The problem of students dropping out of school is one of the barriers to improving educational outcomes in poor and developing countries. Purpose: This small scale, in-depth study sought to explore the phenomenon of students who drop out from secondary education, through the perspectives of fathers of such students in a rural district of Pakistan. Method: Primary data were collected through detailed, individual interviews with 14 fathers whose sons had dropped out from secondary education. The study adopted a framework involving push and pull factors to analyse qualitatively the processes and examine the reasons for dropping out that prevailed inside and outside school. Findings: The analysis suggested that, from the perspectives of the fathers, family poverty, poor academic performance and issues relating to teachers' engagement with teaching at school were main factors involved in a student dropping out of school. Conclusions: The findings from this small scale, detailed analysis of data draw attention to the issues arising from a tension in mainstream teachers' educational roles in and beyond the school. It further highlights the need for greater investment in secondary education, in order to help to reduce rates of student drop out in the remote rural areas of Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dynamics of poverty has become a debatable issue and has emerged as one of the most common socioeconomic challenge across the developing world. The present research examines the issue of poverty in the multidimensional spectrum across the agro-climatic zones in Punjab Province of Pakistan on the basis of Pakistan Social and Living Standard Management (PSLM)/Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) data (1998–1999 to 2013–2014). The study employed Alkire and Foster methodology and analyzed that the dynamics of multidimensional poverty across agro-climatic zones exhibits mixed trends. Overall estimates designate a significant decline over the decade, whereas slower declining pace was mainly attributed to the wider deprivation of different socioeconomic spheres of well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We deviate from standard literature on assessment of household poverty. Contrary to standard practice of using household income and consumption, we use Wealth Index, calculated through Principal Component Analysis (PCA), as measure of poverty. Data from Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey (PDHS) 2006–07, gathered from female respondents, suggests an interplay of several socio-demographic factors underlying the incidence of household poverty. The multivariate analysis shows that household size, dependency ratio, and sex and age of the head of household are significantly associated with poverty status. Higher education lowers the likelihood of poverty while the opposite is true for the dependency ratio. Most interestingly, male headed households are more likely to have poverty-lower wealth index-compared to households headed by female. We also provide evidence that the impact of household characteristics on poverty is sensitive to the area of residence, rural or urban, and different regions. We conclude that DHS data provides an assessment of household poverty which goes beyond economic factors and single dimension measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landlessness and poverty are closely linked to each other. Being agricultural country, land is considered as a principal asset in Pakistan. This study aims to identify the poverty situation of landless peasants in Pakistan. Primary data are collected by simple random sampling method. Binary logistic regression model are used to estimate the relationship between landlessness and poverty. Result shows that high age of household head, education level, land ownership, operational land holding, and income earners in a household significantly reduces the chances of household's poverty. The value of Gini coefficient is found 0.63 that indicates that there is high income inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to provide insights into selected features of Pakistan’s most wanted terrorists using a dataset of 895 high-profile terrorists provided by the Counter Terrorism Wings of the Criminal Investigation Departments of regional police offices of Pakistan. It identifies spatial patterns of terrorist supply at subnational levels. The educational background of terrorists has also been analyzed. Noteworthy variations are observed in the supply of different types of terrorists across the geographical landscape of Pakistan. Findings also reveal that though terrorists are relatively more educated than the population group they emerge from, there is a higher probability of them emerging in districts with lower socio-economic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Literature on social protection, inequality, and poverty suggest that social protection programs are the policy tool for the eradication of poverty and inequality. The exact targeting of beneficiaries is the most important pillar behind the success of every social protection schemes. Asian Development Bank introduced Revised Social Protection Index in 2010, which is used by several studies for the evaluation of social protection schemes. The current study estimates the revised social protection index of Pakistan for the years 2011 and 2013. During 2011, the average per capita expenditure on social protection was 5.1% of the poverty line expenditure, whereas during 2013, average per capita expenditure on social protection was 5.3% of the poverty line expenditure. The disaggregated form of social protection index indicates that the coverage of social protection programs are low in Pakistan. The expenditures on social protection programs are high for the non-poor and very low for poor. The gender-based disaggregated form of social protection index shows that women have a lower value of social protection index than do males. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Participatory and creative research methods are a powerful tool for enabling active engagement in the research process of marginalised people. It can be particularly hard for people living with multiple disadvantage, such as disabled people from ethnic minority backgrounds, to access research projects that are relevant to their lived experience. This article argues that creative and participatory methods facilitate the co-researchers’ engagement in the research process, which thus becomes more empowering. Exploring the congruence of these methods with their professional ethos, health and care professionals can use their skills to develop them further. Both theory and practice examples are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Propoor economic and regional policies focus on increasing the economic returns to the productive factors that the poor possesses. The objective of the study is to examine the impact of intrasectoral gains/losses and intersectoral shifts in population on aggregate changes in poverty in Pakistan. The result shows that the urban and rural sectors contributed to the increase in aggregate poverty, though the “interaction effect” and the “population shift effect” alleviated poverty, the overall impact was negligible. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

During 2010 and 2011, Pakistan experienced a series of catastrophic floods. Sindh was the worst affected province, where people already living with chronic poverty and accompanying vulnerability were still recovering from the 2010 mega floods. Women, elderly people, minority groups, differently abled people, and children were among those hit hardest. This study examines and evaluates the gender aspects of the early recovery housing/one–two-room shelters provided by humanitarian organisations to replace destroyed houses in two districts (Dadu and Thatta) of Sindh Province. It draws on examples from the field in order to understand the experiences of vulnerable people, especially women, in participating in housing programmes and projects. Results show that international and national standards related to gender were not, in this case, properly taken up in the implementation of the response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article traces a possible link between radicalisation and poverty in Pakistan by surveying 1147 respondents, consisting of a poor sample universe compared with more affluent control groups. All the provinces of Pakistan were included in the sample universe, with the findings centred on an analytical discourse of poverty in North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Balochistan province, which have given rise to escalating militancy. The analysis engages with relevant literature to argue for the development of sub-nationally researched, fresh perspectives on linkages between poverty and radicalisation in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model specially constructed for investigating gender dimensions of the effects of trade liberalization in Pakistan in both production and consumption. The model employs various indicators to measure the gendered impacts, including income poverty (Foster-Greer-Thorbecke [FGT] Indices), time poverty (leisure), capability poverty (literacy and infant mortality), and welfare (Equivalent Variation [EV]). The simulation results show that revenue-neutral trade liberalization in Pakistan increased women's employment in unskilled jobs and increased women's real wage income more than men's for all types of labor, but kept the division of labor biased against women. The study finds that Pakistan's trade liberalization adversely affected women in relatively poor households by increasing their workload, deteriorating capabilities, and increasing relative income poverty. However, the effects remained gender neutral or favored women in the richest group of households. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reporting the results of a novel survey of shocks, coping, outcomes, and safety nets in Pakistan, we find high incidence and cost of shocks borne by households, with health and other idiosyncratic shocks dominating in frequency, costliness, and adversity. Sample households lack effective coping options and use mostly self-insurance and informal credit. Many shocks result in food insecurity, informal debts, child and bonded labour, and recovery is slow. Private and public social safety nets exist but offer little effective protection. Public action is needed to better control public health hazards and provide non-exploitative credit and more effective safety nets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to contribute to the literature by carefully documenting home-based work in four sectors in Pakistan in a value chain context. We attempt to isolate and compare the unit remuneration of workers relative to unit value added at the lowest tier of the chain as a measure of income share. These income shares are not adequate to move home-based workers above the poverty line. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan faces many problems. The struggle over the country's Islamic dimension is undecided. Pakistan continues to be a hotbed of Islamic fervor. As evidenced by the frequent interruptions of civilian rule by military regimes the country is not sure which course to follow. Violence has become Pakistan's trademark. The jihadi culture is frightening. Poverty and underdevelopment are wide spread. The educational system is a mess. Integration of the different ethnicities has not been completed. Enmity characterizes the relationship to India, mistrust that to Afghanistan. Its nuclear weapons capability is looked upon with suspicion by Western countries. Fundamental changes will only be possible if Pakistan finds its way to democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article argues that the Green Revolution in Pakistan has failed to live up to its promise of ending hunger, unemployment and poverty. An analysis of the time series data of the past four decades points to the worsening of inequalities in income and asset distribution, contributing to the poverty of one in every three Pakistanis [World Bank, 2002, 1992]. The article measures the distributional impact of the Green Revolution in three allied areas of tenurial security, rural employment and rural household income, which tended to decline correspondingly, worsening income and asset distribution. Based on this evidence, this article makes a case for equitable land distribution in rural Pakistan, where half of the population is landless [World Bank, 2002]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents information on a study which investigated the magnitude of chronic or transitory poverty making an explicit adjustment for measurement error using a five-year panel of 686 households from rural Pakistan. Methodology of the study; Results and discussion on the study; Conclusions.