Pakistan progresses on poverty reduction - but what about equity?
(WorldNews Pakistan)

IN recent years, Pakistan has made remarkable progress in reducing poverty. Estimates based on the national poverty line, which was set at Rs3,030.3 per adult equivalent per month based on 2013-14 prices, show a consistent decline over the past two decades. Between 2001 and 2015, approximately 32 million people were lifted out of poverty and the poverty rate was more than halved, going from 64 per cent in 2001 to 24pc in 2015. However, a lot is yet to be done. Not only because 2015 estimates show that approximately one in four Pakistanis still does not have enough money to satisfy basic needs, but - even more alarming - progress has been far from equal when looking across the provinces,...