Pakistan's Silent Crisis: The Collapse of Social Development

 

By: Atiq Chaudhry

Government functionaries frequently present an optimistic narrative: touting economic growth, improved GDP figures, and new infrastructure projects as hallmarks of a bright future. However, for a true national assessment, we must look beyond official statements and scrutinize the depth and inclusivity of this supposed progress. If economic development is genuinely underway, why do our critical social development indicators tell a contradictory, grim story? Globally, our rankings in essential indices like health, education, and gender equality are in continuous decline. This stark contradiction confirms a tragic reality, the benefits of economic growth are failing to trickle down to the majority, leaving the nation in a deepening human development crisis.

The recent World Bank report, "Reclaiming Momentum towards Prosperity," decisively dismantles the narrative that economic growth is stabilizing the middle class. The report confirms rising poverty and clearly indicates that the country's existing developmental model is fundamentally broken. The emerging middle class, accounting for 42.7% of the total population, struggles to achieve basic economic security, often lacking safe sanitation, clean water, and affordable energy a clear sign of failing public service delivery. These facts become more alarming when juxtaposed with poverty statistics: National poverty stands at a staggering 25.3%, an eight-year high, while the figure jumps to 44.7% against the international poverty line. The catastrophic 2022 floods further exacerbated the situation, pushing an additional 13 million people below the poverty line. Current year's flood damages are still not confirmed, including the extent of damages to national economic growth, especially in the agriculture sector, and infrastructure disruption . The Punjab government is currently progressing with damage estimation .The annual pace of poverty reduction, once 3%, has now slowed to a mere 1%, and is currently reversing due to economic distress. The World Bank forecasts economic growth to remain limited to 2.6% this fiscal year, with poverty expected to hold firm at over 44%, underscoring a structural inability to translate growth into social welfare. The employment scenario reflects a severe lack of economic resilience. Over 85% of jobs are in the informal, low-wage sector, leaving workers vulnerable and without social protection. The largest tragedy is the wastage of youth potential: 37% of young people aged 15−24 are neither employed nor engaged in education or training, a monumental loss of future productivity. Furthermore, female labor force participation is a mere 25.4%. This is tragically underscored by the World Economic Forum's 2024 Global Gender Gap Report, which ranked Pakistan 147th out of 148 countries. This structural exclusion effectively cuts our economic and social evolution in half, ensuring that a significant portion of the working-age population remains marginalized. The underlying issue is that the economy is creating too few high-value, formal jobs, trapping a majority in a cycle of precarious income. The global benchmark for social and human progress lies in the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Yet, due to systemic and institutional neglect, these global targets are dying a quiet death in Pakistan. We must confront the harsh truth: The goal of ending poverty (SDG 1) feels like chasing a mirage, with the rate currently exceeding 39%. The food crisis (SDG 2) is devastating; UNICEF and WFP reports indicate that over 40% of Pakistani children suffer from stunting, a clear marker of chronic, irreversible malnutrition, placing the country among the worst globally for child nutrition. Spending just 1.2% of GDP on health (SDG 3) is a profound moral and economic failure. The consequences are dire: Infant and maternal mortality rates are among the highest globally, with WHO reports consistently flagging the high ratio of women dying during or shortly after childbirth. The healthcare infrastructure is collapsing; the ratio of one doctor for every 1200 people in Punjab is not just a statistic; it signifies a broken health system suffering from a chronic shortage of qualified staff, essential drugs, and modern infrastructure. Similarly, in education (SDG 4), millions of children remain out of school, and literacy rates (Punjab 67%, Sindh 59%) highlight vast regional disparities. Alarmingly, a Senate Standing Committee on Finance report revealed that Pakistan spends the least on health (0.48% of GDP) and education (1.9% of GDP) compared to regional peers, cementing our status as a nation that does not prioritize its human capital. The water crisis is equally acute (SDG 6), with over half of the population lacking access to clean drinking water, completely undermining the 2030 mission to ensure sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. Ultimately, the failure of all other goals stems from a lack of Good Governance (SDG 16). Incidents of alleged interference in judicial independence and decision-making have severely eroded public trust in institutions, as confirmed by our consistently poor ranking in the Rule of Law Index. Where the justice system is ineffective, accountability dissolves, allowing corruption and inefficiency to thrive. Institutional weakness is the single greatest impediment to our social progress. These figures are not just reports; they are a national warning. The combination of compromised political freedoms, rising poverty, and chronic neglect of health and education is actively sabotaging our future. This is not mere underperformance; it is the result of deep-seated institutional inaction—a calculated apathy towards the common citizen. We need more than rhetoric; we need an Emergency Action Plan—a Seismic Shift—that breaks the policy paralysis and makes social development the non-negotiable top priority. This demands revolutionary budgetary reforms: the government must commit to allocating 5% of GDP to health and 4% to education, bringing investment in human capital in line with regional aspirational standards. This must be coupled with the revival of local governance—which ensures service delivery closer to the citizen—and the establishment of a rigorous system of accountability. It is time for tangible, data-driven action, not symbolic gestures. We must mobilize our resources and unite to make the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda a reality, ensuring that no Pakistani is left behind. The choice is simple: institutionalize indifference, or initiate an institutional revolution.