Pakistan Studies 2059/2 Unit 12

Population

The birth rate refers to the annual number of births per thousand population while the
death rate refers to the annual number of deaths per thousand population.

The difference between the birth and death rate is known as the natural increase or the
growth in population. The equation below represents the above information.

Rate of Natural Increase = Birth Rate - Death Rate

Reasons for increase in population:

Some of the primary reasons for high population growth are:

❖ Illiteracy is causing unawareness among the people.

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When people are unaware of the negative impacts of high population growth, they do not
understand the need to control the increasing population.

This is a major concern when it comes to the people of rural areas because the educational
system in a rural area is not very developed at the moment due to lack of resources.

❖ In rural areas, there is a high demand for sons.

The farmers in rural areas prefer sons so that they can assist them in work on the farms. As
a result, there are larger families in rural areas as compared to urban areas.

❖ The ideology of some Muslims and the opposition by ulemas is a major factor as well.

Some Muslims strongly believe that “Rizq” (sustenance) is provided by God to each and
every soul. Therefore, they condemn the family planning programmes and consider them
useless

Similarly, some ulemas (religious scholars) also condemn the family planning programmes
on religious grounds and these hindrances eventually lead to an increase in population.

❖ Child labour is associated with the increase in population as more children can bring
more money home.
❖ The span of reproductivity increases because of early age marriages.
❖ On a religious basis, family planning programs have received resistance from religious
groups.
❖ The refugees from Afghanistan also contributed to the rapid growth of the
population.
❖ Lack of literacy since people do not understand the causes of population growth.

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❖ Government's inconsistent policies.

Problems Faced Because of Population Growth:

❖ Unemployment and underemployment.

❖ No security for food.
❖ Increased workload on health facilities including medicines, hospitals, and doctors.
❖ Shortage of water, electricity, educational institutions.
❖ Increase in child labour.
❖ It burdens housing facilities as well as transport resources.
❖ Increase in terrorism and crime rate.

Efforts Needed for Balanced Population Growth:

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❖ Awareness programs should be started by the Government and NGOs regarding the
bad influences of having more children in urban and rural areas both.
❖ Affordable contraceptives should be provided to the people.
❖ Child labour should be banned to discourage people from having more children.
❖ The necessary measures should be taken for the increase in literacy rate.
❖ Emphasis should be put on the promotion of female education.
The Demographic Transition Model:

Stage 1 (1905 – 1935):

❖ The birth rate and death rate both were high during this period.
❖ The population growth was slow.
Stage 2 (1936 – 1970):
❖ During this period, the birth rate was high.
❖ However, the death rate became slow because of an increase in medical & health
facilities.
Stage 3 (1971 – 2013):

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❖ There was a decrease in birth rate because of literacy, career-oriented females and
family planning programs.
❖ The death rate was also low.
❖ The living standard was improved.
Stage 4 (2014 – 2040):
❖ If the birth rate and death rate remain slow then Pakistan will achieve a stable stage.
Population Structures:

❖ Population structure is usually represented using population pyramids.

❖ It is the percentage of males and females in various age groups.
❖ It indicates the following stats:
- High birth rate resulting in high dependency.
- Low death rate.
- The minor increase in life expectancy (Average survival time of human beings).
Effect on Economy & Development by Present Day Population Structure:

❖ An increase in birth rate puts the burden on the country's economic resources
leading to negative economic growth.
❖ To meet the basic needs, Pakistan needs to start many development projects.
❖ The age group (15 to 60 years) with less population also negatively affects the
economy.
❖ Pakistan is having a high population proportion of old people that can further burden
the economy.
Pakistan’s Projected Population Structure:

❖ In the next 20 years, Pakistan will experience a further downfall in the birth rate and
death rate.

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❖ Age growth (15 to 75 years) will comprise a larger proportion of fulfilling the need for
skilled labour.
❖ The high aged population will still be a burden, but they can be a guide to young
people too.
❖ The lower birth rate will also decrease the dependency rate.

Employment

❖ It is defined as the individuals who are ten years or above and worked for an hour
from the reference period.
❖ These individuals are known as self-employed or paid-employed.
❖ The employed workforce can be divided into the following three sectors:
- Primary Sector
- Secondary Sector
- Tertiary Sector
Primary Sector:

❖ The labour force involved in the primary sector is responsible for extracting raw
materials from the sea or earth.
❖ It accumulates to 45% of the employed individuals.
Secondary Sector:

❖ It is the workforce that processes and manufactures raw materials.

❖ It accumulates to 14% of the labour force.
Tertiary Sector:

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❖ It is the sector that deals with services including banking, administration, education,
and others.
❖ It accumulates to 41% of the workforce.
Unemployment:

❖ It represents the individual who is unable to find a paid job.

Disguised Unemployment:

❖ It is when the number of workers is greater than the needed workers.

Causes of Unemployment:

❖ Unemployment is a consequence of authorities' inability to create the needed

opportunities for the skilled and unskilled workforce.
❖ It creates a huge gap between demand and supply of labour force.
❖ Disguised unemployment in the primary sector makes it a challenge to come up with
an actual figure of the demand and supply.
❖ High population growth.
❖ Changing technologies.
❖ Rural-urban migration.
❖ Political instability.
How Literacy & Training can Solve Unemployment Issue?

❖ Improved literacy rates will reduce pressure on the primary sector.

❖ Literate workers can work more efficiently as compared to unskilled and illiterate
workers.
❖ If literate workers can meet the specialized labour demand than there will be no
demand and supply gap.

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❖ Trained and skilled workers can find better opportunities locally and abroad.
❖ Literate workers will also understand the importance of a quality lifestyle and having
a small family.
Employment Generation Through Literacy & Training:

Agricultural:
❖ Agricultural training institutions should be established.
❖ Agriculture should be taught as a primary subject in these institutions.
❖ In these institutions, practical training must be given with the help of model farms.
❖ Workshops should be helpful for the technical training of repairing agricultural
machinery.
❖ Training centers for cottage industries should also be established.

Industrial:
❖ Specialized training must be given considering manufacturer requirements.
❖ In the training, basic knowledge about the plant and its functions must be provided.
❖ The training must also guide people about the maintenance of machinery and plant.
❖ The necessary emergency and safety procedures must be taught.
❖ They must be taught the handling of advanced machinery with practical
demonstration.
❖ Trainees should be facilitated to acquire international standard training from abroad.
❖ The managers of these plants must be given training regarding the management.
Effects of Unemployment on Economic Development:

❖ It results in low GDP and GNP because fewer people are generating income.

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❖ The high unemployment rate also results in low wages and salaries i.e. less tax
collection.
❖ It decreases the production growth of goods as demand also decreases because of
employment.
❖ Because low-income generation, the government often increases the rate of tax
collection.
❖ It reduces government funds and as a result foreign and local investment also
reduces.
❖ Unemployment also increases the dependency rate.

Density & Movement of Population

Factors Affecting the Distribution and Density of Population:

❖ The natural topography affects the population i.e. people prefer to live on flat or
undulating terrains or at doabs.
❖ People prefer moderate temperatures and rainfall.
❖ The soil that is fertile, deep and spread by rivers also attracts population.
❖ People prefer constant water supply; therefore, areas close to rivers and lakes have a
high population.
❖ People prefer natural routes including the confluence of valleys, mountain gaps, and
natural harbors.
❖ The efficient transport including rail, road, and air also attracts people to settle down.
❖ The supply of HEP and thermal stations.
❖ Government policies, port facilities, and tourism development are also some factors
that affect the population.

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❖ People like to live in areas that have better accommodation, health, and education
facilities.

Migration

❖ The movement of people from one location to another is called migration.

❖ Migration mostly takes place Rural Area (Village/countryside) to Urban Area
(Cities/towns)
❖ Migration can be international or internal.
❖ Internal migration happens within the country e.g. movement of people from rural to
the urban area.
❖ International migration involves the movement of people to other countries.
❖ Pakistan is facing a rise in rural to urban migration.
Rural to Urban Migration:
It is a migration which takes place when people form villages / country side to towns / cities

Rural Push Factors:

❖ Unemployment, the burden on land and ownership and division of land among sons.
❖ The poor quality of life and overpopulation.
❖ Less food production and the issues of waterlogging, salinity and soil erosion.

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❖ The rise of mechanization resulted in unemployment.
❖ Natural disasters e.g. floods.
Urban Pull Factors:

❖ The urban areas have better employment opportunities.

❖ The urban areas offer an improved lifestyle.
❖ It has more food sources.
❖ The entertainment factor also attracts people there.
❖ It has better civic services e.g. education, health, transport, etc.
Influence of Rural-Urban Migration:

❖ Due to increase movement to urban areas, the living condition has deteriorated.
❖ The health hazards in cities have increased as well as the slums.
❖ The civic services are also overburdened.
❖ Water, land and air pollution has increased.
❖ The traffic situation is worsened.
❖ The crime rate and terrorism have increased.
❖ Depression, child abuse, drug usage has become a common problem.
❖ The suicide rate because of unemployment has also increased.
❖ The gender-balanced has been disturbed in both urban and rural areas.

Self-Help Scheme:

❖ It is usually a government-sponsored program. (Orangi Pilot Project-Karachi)

❖ It encourages people to create self-employment and growing their food.

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Advantages:
❖ It offers shelter to low-income families and helps in reducing poverty.
❖ It motivates people to take responsibility for cleaning the area resulting in a healthy
environment.
❖ People are promoted and provided with financial aid to start their businesses as well
as to improve their standard of living.
❖ People take care of their areas' security, as a result, the crime rate reduces.
❖ Recreational facilities can be built.
❖ In localities like this, NGOs also provide their share of help and support.
Disadvantages:
❖ Construction material is very expensive leading to failure of these schemes.
❖ Low-income families don't have savings to contribute to these schemes.
❖ Corruption is high in these schemes.
❖ These schemes are very slow as there are financial constraints and administration
delays.
❖ These projects lack good leadership.
❖ These schemes also attract more rural to urban migration.
❖ Government changes as well as political stability effects or delay these schemes.
Reasons for Out-Migration from Pakistan:

❖ The lack of employment opportunities.

❖ The rise of development projects in the Middle East during the 80s and 90s.
❖ The high standard lifestyle of foreign countries like the USA.
❖ The increase in crime rate and corruption in Pakistan.
❖ Canada is under the threat of depopulation and its policy is attracting more people
from countries like Pakistan to migrate.

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❖ The political tensions.
Effects of Out-Migration:

❖ Increase in remittance.
❖ Improvement in Information Technology.
❖ Pressure on limited employment relieved.
❖ Increased investment in Pakistan by overseas Pakistanis.
❖ Cultural interchange.
Causes of Seasonal Migration:

❖ The practice of Transhumance (Semi Nomadic or season migration of people from

Highlands to Low lands) in the north-western and northern areas of Pakistan.
❖ During the drought season, there is a shortage of food and employment; people
migrate to urban areas during this time.
❖ During flood season, people migrate to safe locations.
❖ During the harvesting season, people migrate to farms in search of employment.
❖ Agro-based factories also hire workers on a seasonal basis.
Sustainable Population Growth:

❖ A population can be supported by the country’s economic resources all year round in
known as the sustainable population.
How can it be maintained?
❖ By starting awareness programs regarding the consequences of the rapid growth of
population.
❖ By attaining resource and population balance.
❖ By promoting family planning programs.

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