Demographic transition in Pakistan: implications for old-age employment and security

Durre Nayab, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE)

There is much talk about reaping the “demographic dividend” in Pakistan, but there is a need to realise that capitalising on the dividend is not just about creating opportunities for the young. Seizing the opportunity inherent in the dividend, to stimulate economic growth and reduce poverty, is about policies linked to the elderly. Unemployment rates show an increasing trend with age, and in the absence of any old-age security system, it leaves the elderly in a vulnerable state. Without an educated, skilled and economically flexible work force, the social and economic costs of aging in terms of security of health and pensions would be difficult to endure. Employment and employability should be the ethos of all the economic and social policies. This necessitates major investment in human capital, and introduction of social reforms to draw in women, since labour markets are always socially entrenched.