Urban Sector

Urbanization is commonly believed to be closely tied to economic expansion, especially in industrialized countries. Cities are estimated to generate more than 80 percent of the world's GDP. Pakistan has the highest urbanization rate in all of South Asia. According to the 2017 Census, 36.4 percent of the country's population resides in urban areas. By 2025, according to UNDP estimates, about half of the country's population will reside in urban areas. Cities in Pakistan create 55 percent of the GDP. Pakistan derives 95 percent of its federal tax revenue from ten big cities with higher per capita incomes than the national average. The multidimensional poverty rate in urban regions is roughly one-sixth in rural areas. The housing deficit is estimated to be about 9 million households, with an annual growth of 0.35 million. It means that one-third of Pakistan's 32 million households lack access to adequate housing. In contrast, migration from rural to urban areas, separating households from the traditional joint family system, and population growth have contributed to the urban housing crisis in Pakistan. The estimated average annual growth rate of the urban sector in Pakistan is 2.70 percent, compared to 2.23 percent for the rural sector. In Pakistan, 45.5 percent of the total urban population lives in slums. Urbanization's benefits can only be achieved through effective public policy. The effects of unplanned urbanization are urban slums, environmental degradation, poverty, and inequality. (UNDP Pakistan; Census report of the year 2017). The CEPD offers measures for the urban sector to solve critical challenges, such as low housing quality and affordability, the fragile state of water and sanitation, transportation, urban health and education, and land management.