Demographic Dividend and gender imbalance in Labor force participation rate in Pakistan: Multistate Population Projections by employment status

The labor force participation rate (LFPR), particularly for women has the topic of great interest for labor economist since decades. LFPR in Pakistan responds to economic, social, cultural and demographic mechanisms. Virtually, in every society, male labor force participation rate is higher than female, primarily to accommodate women’s reproductive functions and family responsibilities. Pakistan experiences a demographic window of opportunities in present and near future. In order to maximize the socio-economic benefits of this dividend, female LFPR plays a vital role. However, Pakistan has one of the lowest LFPR for women in the world, more accurately, one of the lowest rates for urban women—about 22 percent in 2010. Furthermore, it was observed that female with no education has the higher participation rate in latest LFS 2010. In this study, we assess the pattern of female LFPR and its determinant in Pakistan. We used several data sets such as, DHS, LFS and PSLM. This study is categories into two parts. The first part provides comprehensive overview of the LFPR by gender, place of residence and by educational level in Pakistan during last three decades and analyses the proximate determinant of LFPR. In the second step, this paper applies state-of-art multistate population projections methodology by level of employment in Pakis