Youth hit hardest as 4.5m remain jobless

As many as 4.5 million individuals are unemployed in the country, with the youth aged 15-24 having the highest unemployment rate of 11.1 per cent, according to the Pakistan Economic Survey 2023-24 released on Tuesday. These figures are based on the 2020-21 Labour Force Survey, after which no employment survey has been conducted during the last three years, highlighting the apathetic attitude of the rulers towards such an important issue. According to the survey, the total labour force stands at 71.8m — 48.5m in rural areas and 23.3m in urban areas. The employed labour force is 67.3m: 45.7m rural and 21.5m urban, while 4.5m are unemployed. Moreover, the unemployment ratio is higher amongst females, with 14.4pc of women unemployed compared to 10pc men.