Executive summary

Gender equality in Pakistan is advancing in some areas, yet structural gaps remain persistent across education, health, economic participation, and public decision‑making. The latest government statistics and official sector reports show that women carry a disproportionate burden of unpaid care work, participate less in the labor market, and face unequal access to opportunities and services—patterns that shape national progress on poverty reduction, human capital development, and economic growth. This report summarizes the most recent official information available and maps it to SDG 5 targets, while highlighting how gender outcomes interact with SDGs 3 (Health), 4 (Education), 8 (Decent Work), 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and 16 (Peace, Justice and Institutions).

Primary official data sources used

Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS): Labour Force Survey 2024–25 (Annual Report) and Key Insights; PSLM survey portal; Social Indicators of Pakistan.
Ministry of Finance: Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25 (and health/education chapters in recent surveys).
Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP): Annual Report 2024 and General Elections 2024 documentation.
Planning Commission: National Gender Policy Framework (NGPF).
Government of Pakistan / UNICEF: National Nutrition Survey 2018 (latest national nutrition survey).
National Institute of Population Studies (NIPS): Pakistan Demographic & Health Survey 2017–18 (latest DHS round).

Note: Some nationally representative series (e.g., DHS and NNS) are not annual; where no newer national round is available, the latest official publication is cited as the baseline.

Snapshot dashboard (selected gender‑relevant indicators)

The following indicators are drawn from recent official releases. They provide a high‑level picture; detailed provincial and rural/urban breakdowns are available in the source documents.

Domain	Latest official indicator (illustrative)	Why it matters for SDG 5
Work & economy	Female labour force participation is reported around the low‑20% range in PBS LFS reporting; male participation is far higher.	Economic empowerment is central to SDG 5 and drives SDG 8 growth and productivity.
Unpaid care work	Official press material on the LFS highlights a large share of women engaged in unpaid work compared to men.	SDG 5.4 targets recognition and redistribution of unpaid care work.
Education	Recent Economic Survey chapters show large male–female gaps in adult literacy and completion rates at higher levels.	Education (SDG 4) is a core pathway to SDG 5 outcomes and labor market inclusion.
Health & nutrition	Economic Survey health chapters and PDHS/NNS baselines show ongoing maternal, reproductive, and nutrition challenges.	SDG 5.6 links to sexual and reproductive health; SDG 3 outcomes depend on women’s access and agency.
Voice & representation	Women’s representation is supported through reserved seats frameworks and electoral processes documented by ECP.	SDG 5.5 targets women’s full participation in leadership and decision‑making.
Safety & justice	Legal and policy frameworks exist; enforcement and service access remain key constraints highlighted in sector discussions.	SDG 5.2 and SDG 16 require prevention of violence and effective institutions.

SDG 5 framework used in this report

SDG 5 includes targets on discrimination (5.1), violence (5.2), harmful practices (5.3), unpaid care work (5.4), leadership and decision‑making (5.5), sexual and reproductive health and rights (5.6), equal rights to economic resources (5.a), enabling technology (5.b), and strong policies and legislation (5.c). The sections below summarize Pakistan’s situation and actionable priorities under each target area.

1) Discrimination and unequal opportunity (SDG 5.1)

Gender gaps in Pakistan are shaped by overlapping barriers: unequal access to quality schooling, constraints on mobility, limited property and asset ownership, social norms affecting workforce entry, and uneven service access across districts. National policy instruments increasingly acknowledge gender mainstreaming, but the practical challenge is converting policy intent into measurable improvements in outcomes—particularly for rural women and low‑income households.

2) Violence and protection (SDG 5.2)

Preventing gender‑based violence requires both legal safeguards and functional response systems. Key community needs include safe reporting channels, survivor‑centered health and psychosocial support, and effective coordination between police, health services, and social welfare departments. Monitoring systems should track case handling timelines, service availability, and referral performance alongside prevalence data. Strengthening institutions and accountability links SDG 5 directly to SDG 16.

3) Harmful practices (SDG 5.3)

Early marriage and closely spaced births remain important risk factors for girls’ schooling and maternal/child health. Reducing harmful practices requires a combined strategy: keeping girls in school, targeted community engagement, enforcement of legal age provisions, and adolescent‑friendly health and counseling services. Programs that combine incentives for secondary school completion with local social mobilization tend to be more effective than single‑channel messaging.

4) Unpaid care and domestic work (SDG 5.4)

Official labor statistics and related analytical work emphasize that women carry a much larger share of unpaid domestic and care work. This ‘time poverty’ restricts women’s participation in paid employment, skills training, and civic engagement. Community‑level solutions include: expanded early childhood education and childcare services; safe transport; time‑saving infrastructure (water, sanitation, clean cooking); and norms‑focused programs encouraging shared household responsibilities. Measuring time use and unpaid work is essential for tracking progress on SDG 5.4.

5) Leadership and decision‑making (SDG 5.5)

Women’s political participation is supported through reserved seats and electoral provisions, and election management documentation provides evidence on processes and participation. The priority is strengthening women’s participation beyond numeric representation: building leadership pipelines, reducing barriers to contesting general seats, supporting women candidates with training and safe campaigning environments, and increasing women’s presence in local governments, public service leadership, and community decision‑making bodies.

6) Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SDG 5.6)

Women’s agency over reproductive health decisions is strongly linked to maternal and child outcomes (SDG 3). Pakistan’s latest DHS baseline and recent economic survey health reporting highlight the continued need to expand quality antenatal care, skilled birth attendance, postpartum follow‑up, family planning access, and nutrition support. Key system actions include: reliable commodity supply chains, respectful maternity care standards, and integrated counseling through primary healthcare platforms.

7) Economic resources and financial inclusion (SDG 5.a)

Equal rights to economic resources depend on women’s access to assets, credit, inheritance, and formal financial services. In practice, constraints often include low formal employment, limited collateral, mobility restrictions, and low access to market networks. Effective approaches combine legal awareness, digital financial access, women‑friendly banking and agent networks, and livelihood programs that link skills training to local demand (agri‑value chains, services, and micro‑enterprise).

8) Technology and empowerment (SDG 5.b)

Digital inclusion can expand women’s access to information, services, learning, and markets. Barriers include device affordability, digital literacy, and online safety. High‑impact interventions include targeted digital literacy for women, helplines and reporting for online harassment, and digitized service delivery for health, social protection, and learning. Technology is an enabler rather than a substitute for structural reforms.

9) Policies, budgeting, and gender mainstreaming (SDG 5.c)

Pakistan’s policy landscape increasingly emphasizes gender mainstreaming, including national frameworks and sector plans. The central implementation gap is translating policy commitments into funded programs with clear responsibilities, measurable indicators, and routine monitoring. Gender‑responsive budgeting can strengthen SDG 5.c by ensuring that allocations are linked to defined gender outcomes and evaluated for effectiveness.

Cross‑cutting linkages: SDG 5 with SDGs 3, 4, 8, 10 and 16

SDG 3 — Health

Gender affects health through access, autonomy, and quality of care. Improving women’s nutrition, antenatal coverage, family planning access, and protection from violence reduces maternal and neonatal risks and improves child development outcomes. Integrated primary healthcare and community outreach platforms are critical delivery channels.

SDG 4 — Education

Keeping girls in school—especially through lower and upper secondary—has high returns for delayed marriage, improved maternal health, better child nutrition, and increased labor participation. Priorities include safe schools, sanitation facilities, gender‑sensitive pedagogy, and targeted support for rural and low‑income girls.

SDG 8 — Decent Work and Growth

Women’s low labor participation represents a major untapped source of productivity. Expanding women’s employment requires: safe mobility, childcare, skills aligned to market demand, anti‑harassment protections, and employer incentives. Formalization pathways and social protection can reduce vulnerability in informal work.

SDG 10 — Reduced Inequalities

Gender inequality intersects with poverty, geography, disability, and rural–urban divides. Programs should prioritize the most excluded groups—girls in low‑enrollment districts, women in low‑income households, informal workers, and women in disaster‑affected areas—using targeted service packages and social protection.

SDG 16 — Peace, Justice and Institutions

Effective institutions are necessary to prevent and respond to violence, ensure equal legal protections, and deliver services without discrimination. Strengthening case management, legal aid, civil registration, and data systems improves both women’s safety and governance outcomes.

Priority action package (12–24 months)

Adopt a national SDG‑5 indicator dashboard with routine quarterly reporting using PBS/sector administrative data.
Scale community childcare / early childhood solutions in high‑need districts to reduce women’s time poverty.
Expand safe mobility initiatives (women‑only or women‑safe transport routes; lighting; safe public spaces) to improve access to education and work.
Integrate nutrition, family planning, and GBV referral services into primary healthcare and Lady Health Worker platforms.
Implement district‑level girls’ retention packages (stipends, school meals, sanitation facilities, safe transport, learning support).
Strengthen women’s economic inclusion through skills‑to‑jobs programs, SME support, and women‑friendly financial services.
Institutionalize gender‑responsive budgeting in key sectors with outcome‑linked allocations and annual evaluations.
Improve justice and protection pathways: survivor‑centered service standards, one‑stop referral mechanisms, and performance monitoring.

Monitoring and evaluation: suggested indicator set

A practical M&E set for SDG 5.c and cross‑cutting SDGs can include:

Female labor force participation rate; gender wage and employment gaps (PBS LFS).
Time spent on unpaid domestic and care work by sex (time use / labor statistics).
Girls’ net attendance and completion at primary, lower secondary, and higher secondary (PBS/PSLM; education statistics).
Maternal health service coverage (antenatal visits, skilled birth attendance) and key outcomes (health sector reporting).
Proportion of women with access to accounts / digital financial services (financial inclusion reporting where available).
Women’s representation in elected bodies and key public leadership roles (ECP and administrative data).
GBV response performance metrics: reporting, referral completion, service availability, and case timelines (administrative systems).

Annex: official documents (download locations)

Pakistan Labour Force Survey 2024–25 (PBS) — Annual Report: https://www.pbs.gov.pk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/LFS-2024-25-Annual-Report.pdf
Key Insights of Labour Force Survey 2024–25 (PBS): https://www.pbs.gov.pk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Key-Insights-of-Labour-Force-Survey.pdf
Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25 (Finance Division) — portal: https://www.finance.gov.pk/survey_2025.html
Health & Nutrition chapter (Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25): https://www.finance.gov.pk/survey/chapter_25/11_Health_and_Nutrition.pdf
Education chapter (Pakistan Economic Survey 2023–24): https://finance.gov.pk/survey/chapter_24/10_education.pdf
National Gender Policy Framework (Planning Commission): https://www.pc.gov.pk/uploads/report/NGPF.pdf
Election Commission of Pakistan — Annual Report 2024: https://www.ecp.gov.pk/storage/files/2/annual%20report/Annual%20Report-2024-web.pdf
Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2017–18 (NIPS/DHS): https://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/FR354/FR354.pdf
National Nutrition Survey 2018 (Government of Pakistan / UNICEF): https://www.unicef.org/pakistan/media/2826/file/National%20Nutrition%20Survey%202018%20Volume%201.pdf
Pakistan Social & Living Standards Measurement Survey (PBS) — portal: https://www.pbs.gov.pk/docs/pakistan-social-and-living-standard-measurement-survey-pslm/

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