Another 71 years!

As people on social media lament the indecency and licentiousness of the “Women’s March” where slogans like “khana khud garam karlo” amassed immense notoriety, many considering it to be offensive and belligerent, the World Economic Forum (WEF) rewards Pakistan the bottom spot on the Global Gender Parity Index for 2020. Makes sense. To be fair, Pakistan is two steps above scrapping the bottom of the barrel where Iraq and Yemen stand—two war-torn Middle Eastern countries and one Pakistan. Our peers India and Bangladesh are head and shoulder ahead at the 110^th and 50^th spots respectively. Pakistan at its 151^st spot is comfortably bringing down the regional average.

Contrary to popular belief, gender gap is not just a theoretical concept. It is quantifiable and backed by historical evidence, though paucity of data in this neck of the woods is common which reduces the robustness of research. The index has been created keeping in mind broad aspects where gender gaps are visible and documented—including economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, political empowerment and health & survival.

All these factors are interconnected, and Pakistan performs worse where it should lend its focus most—economic participation. Economic opportunities for women in Pakistan are extremely limited. In the index, Pakistan ranks at 150^th out of 153 countries, just above Syria, Iraq and Yemen. Women in Pakistan work mainly at home or at the farm, mostly informally and often unpaid. Though officially, women’s labor force participation (LFP) is 25 percent (men: 85%), their contribution to economic activity is likely under-recorded due to the nature of the work they do—either in the farm or doing other forms of work for home businesses.

Lack of participation means a fair share of the population is not contributing to the productivity in the country. It also means women are less empowered, have less agency to make decisions for themselves and their families which has adverse implications for their and their children’s health. In fact, high infant mortality in Pakistan has been found to be directly and negatively related to women empowerment. Though there is no historical data for wage parity, but some estimates suggest that women in Pakistan earn 77 percent of what men earn at the same level of qualifications and earn 4.3 hours more per day.

The labor force participation survey of Pakistan found that mobility restrictions due to cultural and social norms is the predominant reasons for women not seeking paid employment—nearly 40 percent of non-working women cited ‘lack of permission from male family members’ as the main reason for them not working outside home.

One could hope this mindset would change with education—after all, female education in Pakistan in the form of primary school enrollment has grown. But opportunities are not rife for educated women either. In fact, LFP for women with university degrees is also only 25 percent. Biased gender norms, wage discriminations and limited job options are common as women move up the ladder. This is also evidenced by their absence from the boards of the corporate sector. Working women in Pakistan are finding it harder to successfully land leadership positions.

While it is difficult for educated women to find work, educational gap between males and females in Pakistan is still wide. The index chides: “Less than half of women are literate, compared with 71 percent of men, while the share of women enrolled is systematically lower than the share of men across primary, secondary and tertiary education”. Consider these statistics in the light that literacy in Pakistan is severely miscalculated and overestimated, while the quality of education across all levels is also direly suffering in Pakistan (read: “Education: Two truths and a lie”, Jul 29, 2019).

 There is no magic stick that could equalize women overnight. Today Pakistan is 71 years old. According to the index calculations, given the current pace, it will take 71.5 years for South Asia (where Pakistan is at the bottom) to gain gender parity. Another 71 years—that is quite literally a lifetime. Let’s not forget that. Let’s also not forget that there is no way this country can economically thrive without women being in the thick of it, not even in 71 years, if that.