(November 26, 2025) Mian Zahid Hussain, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum & All Karachi Industrial Alliance, Chairman National Business Group Pakistan, Chairman Policy Advisory Board FPCCI, and Former Provincial Minister Information Technology, stated today that the findings of the newly released Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2024-25 by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, present a critical challenge for the economic planners. With unemployment rising to 7.1%, from 6.3% in 2020-21, there is an immediate need to revitalize the industrial sector to create jobs.
Mian Zahid Hussain highlighted that official unemployment is now 7.1%, and despite adding 10 million jobs in four years, it hasn’t matched population growth. Labor is shifting away from agriculture, with its employment share falling from 37.4% to 33.1%, while the services sector grew from 37.2% to 41.2%. Under the new definition (excluding subsistence farmers), the total labor force stands at 83.1 million, with a participation rate improving slightly to 46.3%. He also warned as labor leaves farms, corporate farming and mechanization must replace manual labor to ensure food security is not compromised.
Mian Zahid Hussain said average monthly wages have risen from Rs 24,000 to Rs 39,000, reflecting the intense inflationary pressure on the cost of living rather than productivity-driven growth. He added our workforce is moving out of agriculture, but the industrial sector is not expanding fast enough to absorb. Instead, they are moving into the services sector, often in low-productivity roles.
Mian Zahid Hussai welcomed the positive trend in female entrepreneurship, which has surged from 19% to 25.2%, calling it a beacon of hope. However, he expressed concern that 76% of women are still engaged in unpaid domestic work, representing a massive loss of potential economic output.
Mian Zahid Hussain pointed out that 10.6% of secondary jobs are in the gig economy and urged the government to support freelancers and IT exports for youth employment.”We cannot afford an unemployment rate of over 7% in a country with such a young population.
Mian Zahid Hussain demanded that to lower the 7.1% unemployment, the manufacturing sector must expand. This is impossible with the current exorbitant electricity and gas tariffs. The government must treat this survey as a wake-up call to lower the cost of doing business and trigger an industrial revolution,” he concluded.
