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This article analysed gender disparities in Pakistan focusing on access to primary education and women's education in light of National Education policies from 1947 to 2017 to achieve universal primary education. This study aimed to trace the evolution of National Education policies (1947–2017) in the attainment of universal primary education and gender disparities in Primary education in Pakistan. A qualitative document analysis technique was employed to extract relevant data related to policy objectives, strategies, and targets of primary education, gender disparities, and women's education. The quantitative data was extracted from the Pakistan Economic Survey 2022–2023, Pakistan Education Statistics 2020–2021, and all National Census 1951, 1961, 1972, 1981, 1998, and 2017. The study found that education policies highlighted the importance of primary education but did not dedicate larger sections to women's education in the first 40 years. The recent education policies addressed the importance of women's education for achieving gender parity. These findings, which stem from a review of national education policies' documents, are in line with the findings drawn from the quantitative data extracted from authoritative reports which stated that significant gender disparities existed in the numbers of primary schools, access to primary education, and students' enrolments throughout the history of Pakistan. The study also found significant gender disparities in the number of primary schools per 100,000 children, with male students comparatively attending schools more than female students. The study found consistent gender disparities in primary education enrolment in Pakistan with notable progress in recent years but have not been able to eliminate these disparities. Gender disparity is evident in literacy rate, gross enrolment rate (GER), and net enrolment rate (NER). The study recommended that the revision of existing policies and formulation of new education policies should be based on comprehensive documentation on women's education and its impact on the economy, literacy rate, and universal primary education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poverty is a big threat to prosperity in developing countries like Pakistan. Alleviating poverty needs concerted efforts including how to measure and analyze poverty. Therefore, this paper employs synthetic panel technique and uses repeated cross-sections household survey dataset (Household Integrated and Economic Survey (HIES)) of Pakistan for 2010–11 and 2015–16, to derive poverty bounds for Pakistan. The findings of the paper suggest that 17% of population still remains in poverty in 2015–16 as they were in 2010–11. They don't move in or out of poverty. In the same periods 19% population affected by poverty. The 2.5% poor's of 2010–11 moves out of poverty in 2015–16. This constitutes the first attempt to provide an insight into poverty dynamics in Pakistan using the available survey data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims an investigating the impact of the agricultural sector on the economic growth of Pakistan. Johansen co-integration was used to show the long-run relation between livestock, fisheries, major crops, minor crops, gross capital formation, and economic growth in Pakistan. The data were taken from the Pakistan Economic Surveys for the period 1987-2017. The Vector-Correction Model results show that in the short run livestock and fisheries have a negative and insignificant effect on growth. The significant negative value of the Vector Error Correction Model coefficients shows that the parameters will do adjustment and return to equilibrium in the long run. The co-integration results showed a positive link between sub-sectors of agriculture and economic growth. The study is crucial for policy makers regarding the promotion of agricultural sector. The agriculture sector is very important for the growth of Pakistan’s economy, but it has not been given due importance. The study recommends the formulation of suitable policies to promote the livestock and fisheries sector in Pakistan to raise the sources of foreign revenue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper panel analysis is being carried on original Relative Income Hypothesis (RIH) and its other modifications over the time span of 1998 to 2015. To furnish reliable and appropriate estimation, Households Integrated Economic Surveys (HIES) based consumption and income variables have been gone through various stages of data filtering. The findings of Feasible Generalized Least Squares (FGLS) significantly validate the relevance of three types of ratchet effects (income, consumption and habit) in provinces. Average Propensity to Consume is highest for Baluchi's households followed respectively by Pashtuns, Punjabi, and Sindhi. The selection of constant slop model implies that province-wise there is no difference in magnitudes of ratchet effect obtained from various versions of RIH. All provinces make adjustments in long run to their consumption in response to income fluctuations. Estimated marginal consumption propensities are according to economic theory that shows smooth consumption path in short run as well in the long run. Polices should be formulated to switch consumer mind set from consumption oriented to saving oriented with the help of appropriate tool of fiscal and monetary policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Household Integrated Economic Surveys (HIES) of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reveal a low level of income inequality in Pakistan. However, this is due to large sampling and non-sampling errors. Appropriate adjustments for the size and inequality in income from different sources reveal that inequality is much higher. The Gini coefficient rises by over 30 per cent and a new measure of inequality, the Pashum ratio, by 42 per cent. Numerous policy implications are derived from the findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The increased socioeconomic inequality in catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) disproportionately affects disadvantaged populations, subjecting them to financial hardships, limiting their access to healthcare, and exacerbating their vulnerability to morbidity. Objectives: This study examines changes in socioeconomic inequality related to CHE and analyzes the contributing factors responsible for these changes in Pakistan between 2010-11 and 2018-19. Methods: This paper extracted the data on out-of-pocket health expenditures from the National Health Accounts for 2009-10 and 2017-18. Sociodemographic information was gathered from the Household Integrated Economic Surveys of 2010-11 and 2018-19. CHE was calculated using budget share and the ability-to-pay approaches. To assess socioeconomic inequality in CHE in 2010-11 and 2018-19, both generalized and standard concentration indices were used, and Wagstaff inequality decomposition analysis was employed to explore the causes of socioeconomic inequality in each year. Further, an Oaxaca-type decomposition was applied to assess changes in socioeconomic inequality in CHE over time. Results: The concentration index reveals that socioeconomic inequality in CHE decreased in 2018-19 compared to 2010-11 in Pakistan. Despite the reduction in inequality, CHE was concentrated among the poor in Pakistan in 2010-11 and 2018-19. The inequality decomposition analysis revealed that wealth status was the main cause of inequality in CHE over time. The upper wealth quantiles indicated a positive contribution, whereas lower quantiles showed a negative contribution to inequality in CHE. Furthermore, urban residence contributed to pro-rich inequality, whereas employed household heads, private healthcare provider, and inpatient healthcare utilization contributed to pro-poor inequality. A noticeable decline in socioeconomic inequality in CHE was observed between 2010 and 2018. However, inequality remained predominantly concentrated among the lower socio-economic strata. Conclusion: These results underscore the need to improve the outreach of subsidized healthcare and expand social safety nets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability in cotton production is inevitable because producing more cotton means more employment, economic acceleration, and industrial expansion. India, China, the United States, Brazil, and Pakistan contribute 74% of worldwide cotton production. Pakistan is contributing only 5%, despite the high potential of cotton. The average yield of cotton in Pakistan is stagnant at 570.99 kg hm−2, whereas it entails the highest cost of production among all other crops. The yield obtained in Pakistan is less than the potential, profitability is drastically lessening, and farmers are abandoning cotton for alternative kharif crops. Some traditional quantitative studies have unveiled different factors that affect cotton production. However, an in-depth qualitative study has never been conducted in Pakistan to explore the root causes of growing cotton crop failure. Following Moustakas's traditional phenomenological guidelines, this phenomenological study was conducted in the district of Rahim Yar Khan in the core cotton zone of Punjab province. A total of 10 interviews were conducted with purposively selected cotton growers based on a criterion: (i) having more than 10 years of cotton growing experience, (ii) being a cotton grower, and (iii) having at least 10 years of formal schooling. Interviews were conducted face to face on an interview guide. One interview lasted 45–50 min, and responses were recorded and analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. A total of 6 themes emerged from the collected data, including (i) climate change, (ii) varietal problems, (iii) pesticide usage, (iv) sense of institutional services, (v) attitude of farmers and (vi) soil health and environment. These six merging themes contributed to cotton crop failure and yield decline. The deep exploration further summarized that researchers, extensionists, and farmers need to seriously consider variety, sowing time, and the environment to revive cotton crops. The detailed recommendations and policy guidelines are presented in this paper, highlighting the cotton sector's research, development and investment areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigates the complex interaction between liquidity and volatility while considering Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) as a moderating factor. Using a comprehensive dataset that incorporates various liquidity measures such as market resilience, depth, and breadth, the study examines how changes in liquidity impact volatility in four Asian incipient economies: China, Pakistan, India, and South Korea. By utilizing sophisticated econometric techniques, particularly the System Generalized Method of Moment (GMM), the findings demonstrate a statistically significant inverse relationship between liquidity and volatility. These findings imply that, within the Asian context, lower levels of volatility are correlated with higher market liquidity. By incorporating EPU into the model, the research acknowledges the significant role of economic factors in shaping market dynamics. Stakeholders, decision-makers, and investors can gain valuable insights from this analysis of variables influencing market stability in Asian emerging economies. The study's outcomes can guide policymakers in formulating strategies that promote market stability and improve market microstructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The labor force is a crucial factor in conducting economic activities, especially in labor-surplus countries like Pakistan. In this study, we explore the impact of labor force participation (LF) on economic growth (EG), with an emphasis on how this impact depends on the levels of health and education expenditures. We analyze time series data from Pakistan spanning from 1980 to 2022, using ARDL (Autoregressive Distributed Lag), ECM (Error Correction Model) and Granger causality techniques for empirical analysis. The ARDL results indicate that LF significantly boosts EG, both in the short and long run. Furthermore, the estimations reveal that better facilities for health and education strengthen the positive effects of LF on EG. This suggests a complementary relationship between health, education, and LF in driving EG. Moreover, our findings highlight the temporal significance of health and education: Health plays a more crucial role in the short run, while education's impact is more substantial in the long run. Furthermore, the Granger causality results indicate that LF, health, and education significantly contribute to EG. It is advisable for the government to prioritize investments in the health and education sectors. This approach can empower individuals to actively and effectively participate in economic activities, eventually contributing to the overall economic output of the nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the study is to explore the relationship between country governance practices along with political stability and Economic policy uncertainty, and stock market performance of two different economies, Pakistan and Kurdistan region of Iraq. To meet our objectives, we used the 25 years past data from 1996 to 2021. Data is collected from the DataStream database. The regression analysis is used as the method of estimation for linear and moderation effect. Our results show that regulatory quality, rules of law and political stability has significant positive relationship with stock market performance of Pakistan, but all the governance indicators have significant positive relationship with stock market performance of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Moreover, political stability has significant moderating impact between the governance practices and the performance of the stock markets of both economies indicating that the governance practices perform well with the political stability that leads to rise in the stock market indices of selected countries. Economic policy uncertainty has significant negative moderation impact due to creating the risk in both economies that decrease the performance of the stock markets of the selected economies. Finally, our study advocated some implications for the investors to increase their confidence on the stock of high political stability and low economic policy uncertainty economies. Government can take significant measures to control the uncertainty of the policy and portfolio managers can adjust their risk on the ground of the political stability and efficient governance practices countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Islamic banking has undergone significant adaption since its inception. This study aims to investigate why and how Islamic banks adapt their services, using participatory financing as evidence. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative study is designed, using working capital financing and commodity operations financing in Pakistan as analytical units. The data for each analytical unit is analyzed using a qualitative content analysis, while the findings are synthesized using a cross-case synthesis method. Findings: Findings suggest that participatory financing has undergone extensive adaptation in the Islamic banking industry of Pakistan, in the wake of resolving constraints to participatory financing and increasing its viability. Consequently, participatory finance has emerged as an attractive and viable option in Pakistan. These findings suggest that unlike in the past, where Islamic banks used to buffer themselves from the environment and ignore the market demands, they have learned to respond effectively to the market demands and the challenges posed by the environment. Research limitations/implications: Findings suggest that the adaptation strategy is more effective than the migration strategy, because it enables the financial service systems to reduce the underlying risks by avoiding emergent threats and eradicating the inherent weaknesses. Originality/value: The extant literature provides a generalized view on the adaptation process that Islamic banks undergo to comply with their environment. However, it is limited in terms of conceptualizing the adaptations and innovations in their products and the underlying structural variations. The present study fills this gap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education system has importance in the development of any country. Without better education no country can make progress. The main objective of the study is to review the problems of education system in Pakistan. For this paper literature regarding problems of education system in Pakistan was critically analyzed. It was find out that major issues faced by our educational system were gender inequality, insufficient educational budget, outdated curriculum, poor examination system, Internal and external influence on education system, lack of quality teachers, political interference, The lack of faculty training and development, dropout ratio, lack of uniformity in education system, Education without Direction and failure to achieve millennium developmental goals. It was recommended that should take steps to decrease gender inequality. Sufficient budget should be allocated for educational purpose. Steps should be taken to minimize drop out. Internal and external interferences should be avoided to improve quality of education. Curriculum should be updated according to needs of people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Financial inclusion and digital finance go side by side and help enhance agricultural activities; however, the magnitude of digital financial services varies across countries. In line with this argument, this study aims to examine whether financial inclusion enhances agricultural participation and decompose the significance of the difference in determinants of agricultural participation between financially included – not financially included households and digital finance – no digital finance households. Design/methodology/approach: This study uses Pakistan's household integrated economic survey 2018/19 to test hypotheses. The logit model is used to examine the effect of financial inclusion on agriculture participation. Moreover, this study employs a nonlinear Fairlie Oaxaca Blinder technique to investigate the difference in determinants of agricultural participation. Findings: This study reports that financial inclusion positively influences agricultural participation, meaning households may have access to financial services and participate in agricultural activities. The results suggest that the likelihood of participating in agriculture in households with mobiles and smartphones is higher. Moreover, household size, income, age, gender, education, urban, remittances from abroad, fertilizer, pesticides, wheat, cotton, sugarcane, fruits and vegetables are the significant determinants of agricultural participation. To distinguish the financially included – not financially included households' gap, this study employs a nonlinear Fairlie Oaxaca Blinder decomposition and finds that differences in fertilizer explain the substantial gap in agricultural participation. Likewise, this study tests the digital finance – no digital finance gap and finds that the difference in fertilizer is a significant contributor, describing a considerable gap in agricultural participation. Research limitations/implications: Empirically identified that various factors cause agricultural participation including financial inclusion and digital finance. Regarding the research limitation, this study only considers a developing country to analyze the findings. However, for future research, scholars may consider some other countries to compare the results and identify their differences. Practical implications: The accessibility of fertilizer can reduce the agricultural participation gap. However, increased income level, education and cotton and sugar production can also overcome the differences in agriculture participation between digital finance and no digital finance households. Originality/value: This is the first study to decompose the difference in determinants of agricultural participation between financially and not financially included households. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of capital structure, firm size, and profitability on tax avoidance and to examine the tax planning strategies implied in the oil and gas industry of Pakistan. Owing to its rapid expansion and enormous profits, the oil industry is a symbol of blue-chip businesses. One way it supports the economy is by increasing the nation's tax income. An analysis of the tax planning techniques suggested in this industry is essential for efficient legislation and departmental evaluation. In this research, the explanatory research method is implied, and only firm-specific factors are considered for analysis. The effect of capital structure, firm size, and profitability on corporate tax avoidance is examined by the Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model. As per the results, capital structure has a negative association whereas firm size and profitability have a positive association with tax avoidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper explores the impact of the green–blue revolution on environmental sustainability proxied by production-based carbon emission and agro-environmental footprint in Pakistan between 1976 and 2020. The basic objective of this study is to evaluate and compare the impact of green–blue revolution on sustainable environment in different quantiles. Johansen co-integration test with trace and max eigenvalues determines the long-run relationship between green–blue revolution and environmental degradation in Pakistan. Using median quantile regression analysis, we find that agricultural machinery, pesticides, and aquaculture production are positive and significant factors of production-based carbon emissions with 0.49, 0.1, and 0.09 coefficient values, respectively, while fertilizers, agricultural credit, and HYV (high yield variety) seeds are not major determinants of production-based carbon emission. At the same time, high variety seeds and fertilizers enhance the agro-environmental footprint in Pakistan with 0.23 and 0.28 coefficients, respectively, by applying median quantile regression. Similarly, agricultural machinery, pesticides, agricultural credit, and aquaculture production are not the major determinants of agro-environmental footprint by using median quantile regression. However, the response of exogenous variables varies from quantile to quantile in the case of both environmental proxies. These results discuss implications for fruitful and effective policies and recommendations for a sustainable environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research article addresses the question “What are the impacts of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the economy of Pakistan”. Here a matter of concern is whether the IMF program has an overall positive impact on the growth of the economy of Pakistan or has just increased the debt burden. Positive impacts include solving the issue of balance of payment, stabilizing the foreign exchange reservoirs, bringing improvement in its exports, and providing money for imports. The negative impacts included the devaluation of Pakistani currency, increased burden of foreign debt, increased excise duties, discouraged investment, and dictate Pakistan in controlling the stock exchange. A qualitative research approach is utilized to examine the impacts of the IMF on the economy of Pakistan. It has been observed from the study that IMF has both positive and negative impacts on the economy of Pakistan. This study explores and analyses in detail the impacts of IMF loans on economic stabilization processes in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan is among the most protectionist economies of the world and highly protective trade regimes thus calls for an investigation of the determinants of this protectionism. The current study intends to examine the macroeconomic determinants of protectionism in the case of Pakistan employing the Granger Causality test and Impulse Response Function covering a time period from 1988-2018. The results of the Granger Causality test reveal that unemployment & GDP Granger cause the tariff rate and there exists a unidirectional relationship between these two variables with the tariff rate. Contrary to this, the tariff rate is granger caused by the trade balance. Terms of the trade is found to have a bidirectional association with the tariff rate, while there is no evidence of a causal relationship between the tariff rate and inflation. The results of Impulse Response functions reveal that an increase in unemployment and a higher TOT, both are found to be positively associated with an increased level of protectionism. However, a higher level of GDP or economic growth leads to reduce the protectionism thereby reducing the tariff rate. The results of the study are quite pertinent in identifying the core factors inducing a high level of protectionism in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extent to which de/centralization is shaped by regime change in federations that have experienced periods of autocratic rule is yet to be fully explored. To this end, this article measures static and dynamic de/centralization in Pakistan – a federal country under autocratic rule for long periods – since the introduction of its first constitution in 1956. Drawing on an original dataset compiled by the authors, this article challenges the narrative that only military regimes have abetted centralization. It also identifies the main instruments of de/centralization and the primary agents behind change, including the military, political parties, and the senior judiciary. The first study of its kind on Pakistan, and part of the project 'Why de/centralization in federations?', this article contributes to the literature on decentralization in hybrid regimes by mapping the longitudinal evolution of Pakistan's federal system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maintaining a stable exchange rate is a challenging task for the world, especially for developing economies. This study examines the impact of asymmetric exchange rates on trade flows in selected Asian countries and finds that the effects of increased exchange rate volatility on exports and imports differ among Pakistan, Malaysia, Japan, and Korea. The quarterly data from the period 1980 to 2018 is collected from the International Financial Statistics (IFS) database maintained by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). We employ both linear and non-linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) models for estimation. The non-linear models yielded more significant findings, while the linear models did not indicate any significant effects of exchange rate volatility on trade flows. The results of the study suggest that in the case of Pakistan, both the linear and non-linear models indicate that increased exchange rate volatility adversely affects exports and imports, while decreased volatility enhances both. This implies that stabilizing the exchange rate would be beneficial for Pakistan's trade. In contrast, the linear model applied to Malaysia shows no long-run effects of exchange rate volatility on exports. However, the result suggests that decreased volatility stimulates Malaysia's exports. Therefore, in the case of Malaysia, stabilizing the exchange rate could contribute to boosting exports. We also found that increased exchange rate volatility boosts exports of Japan. On the other hand, decreased volatility hurts exports of Japan. As for the long-run effects of exchange rate volatility on imports, we found that increased volatility boosts imports of Korea. The study provides various policy implications regarding the impact of exchange rate volatility on trade flows in developing economies. The study highlights the importance of country-specific considerations in understanding the impact of exchange rate volatility on trade flows, and has important policy implications for promoting trade and economic growth in these nations. It emphasizes the need to model exchange rate volatility separately for developed and developing countries and to continue research and analysis to identify ways to mitigate its negative effects on the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research is to inspect whether Corporate Governance (CG) attributes such as Audit Meeting Frequency, Ownership Concentration, Board Meeting Frequency, Foreign Ownership, Institutional Ownership, Board Gender Diversity, Audit Committee Size, Board Size, Audit Reputation and CEO Compensation affect firms' performance in Pakistan. This research employed the pooled least square method to estimate the association among attributed of CG and firm performance measures (Return on Asset and Tobin's Q) by selecting the Cement Sector and Energy sector companies listed in Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) during 2009–2022. A substantial result is that the energy sector's CG system does not differ from the cement sector. Tobin's Q is lesser than ROA, suggesting the same condition as companies in the cement sector. On average, firms in the energy sector are older than the firms in the cement sector. It contradicts the result of profitability proxies of the energy sector. Being older firms, the profitability proxies show lower returns as compared to cement sector firms. Pakistan needs a uniform CG code and the need for good CG practices for specific approaches of firms. This study enhances the literature in CG domain by investigating the impact of CG processes in Pakistani firm's performance. In Pakistan, there are studies available on the topic but the comparison between the selected two industries with such a large data set are the unique elements of the current research. In prior studies, the time interval was also short, only five years. Further, the firm performance was measured by an accounting-based tool and did not include a market-based tool for performance, as well as variables for CG were also limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to global and regional climatic dynamics for a couple of decades, agricultural productivity, rural livelihood, and food security have been badly affected in Pakistan. This study was conducted in Punjab, Pakistan, to explore the farmers' understanding of the impacts of climate change, adaptation strategies, determinants, and benefits on agriculture using data from 1080 respondents. Perceived risks by the farmers in the rice-wheat cropping system and the cotton-wheat cropping system were weed infestation, seed rate augmented, low-quality seeds, infestation of crop diseases and pests, change of cropping pattern, increase of input use, decrease of cropping intensity and productivity, decreasing soil fertility, increasing irrigation frequency, and increase of harvesting time. To alleviate the adverse influences of climate change, the adaptation strategies used by farmers were management of crop and variety, soil and irrigation water, diversification of agriculture production systems and livelihood sources, management of fertilizer and farm operations time, spatial adaptation, access to risk reduction measures and financial assets, adoption of new technologies, institutional support, and indigenous knowledge. Moreover, the results of Binary Logistic Regression indicate that adaptation strategies are affected by different factors like age, education, household family size, off-farm income, remittances, credit access, information on climatic and natural hazards, information on weather forecasting, land acreage, the experience of growing crops and rearing of livestock, tenancy status, tube well ownership, livestock inventory, access to market information, agricultural extension services, and distance from agricultural input/output market. There is a significant difference between adapters and nonadapters. The risk management system may be created to protect crops against failures caused by extreme weather events. There is a need to develop crop varieties that are both high yielding and resistant to climate change. Moreover, cropping patterns should be revised to combat the effects of climate change. To enhance farmers' standard of living, it is necessary to provide adequate extension services and a more significant number of investment facilities. These measures will assist farmers in maintaining their standard of living and food security over the long term to adapt to the effects of climate change based on various cropping zones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last few decades, rising prices of agricultural commodities have been an area of concern for most countries owing to high population growth, increased unemployment, and per capita food needs. The current study intends to examine the positive and negative shocks of agricultural product prices, credit disbursement, and the labor force's impact on the agricultural growth of Pakistan. The nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) method was applied using secondary data sources from 1970 to 2018. The results revealed that positive and negative price shocks contribute positively to agriculture growth; however, positive price shock has a more stimulating effect than negative prices. Furthermore, credit disbursement and labor force significantly positively impact agricultural value added in the short and long run. Finally, the study's findings have far-reaching consequences for policymakers dealing with Pakistan's asymmetric relationship between agricultural credit disbursement, commodity prices, and agricultural growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study is to use the Markov Regime Model (MSM) to evaluate the impact of three important FCIs and the political economy on Pakistan's economic growth. The current research used quarterly data from 2000 to 2020. The empirical results demonstrate that dictatorship contributes favorably to the high and low growth regime of the economy, while election time contributes positively to the expansion period and adversely in recession times of the economy. Results confirmed that external debt has a strong negative influence on economic growth in both the high and low-growth regimes. Remittances, FDI, and growth, on the other hand, have a positive and substantial link with economic growth. This research suggested that effective fiscal and monetary policies, as well as a suitable political environment, should be provided so that foreign investors would be enticed to invest in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have demonstrated that bullying and cyberbullying are prevalent in Pakistani educational institutions, negatively affecting students' physical and mental health. Literature has revealed that it has not always been successful to prevent bullying in Pakistani educational institutions by adapting or adopting antibullying interventions from other countries. Sohanjana Antibullying Intervention is the first contextualized antibullying intervention designed specifically for Pakistani teachers. Assisting teachers in identifying bullying and victimization issues prevalent in educational institutions, intervening quickly to assist pupils, and creating a conducive school environment are the main goals of this program. A description of the Sohanjana intervention program, its modules, and its design is presented in the current study. After a comprehensive literature review on bullying in Pakistan, and conducting a baseline survey for need assessment, the program's content and activities have been developed. In this 32-hour professional development program, teachers are trained on eight different themes over the course of eight modules. In the present paper, the design, the theoretical background, details of the different modules and preliminary evaluation data of the Sohanjana intervention program are presented. A pilot study of the intervention so far has produced successful results and gathered positive feedback from participants. As a result of the feedback, several recommendations and suggestions are discussed in the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a need to explore the moderating role of banks' efficiency in the relationship between corporate governance (CG) and default probability in Pakistan. Such attention is required due to poor bank governance, which threatens banks' stability. This empirical study's objective is to ascertain the impact of CG on bank default probability by considering banking efficiency as a moderating factor for the period spanning 2012–2020 by using secondary data from banks in Pakistan. The results, estimated using System GMM regression—whose robustness was confirmed through Driscoll and Kraay's standard error approach findings—show a significant relationship between banks' CG and bank efficiency. Banks' better CG practices will improve bank efficiency toward financial soundness in Pakistan. Moreover, the current study puts forth certain implications, i.e. that the banks still need to improve the mechanism they use to implement corporate governance attributes to compete properly on the international stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High external debt with high inflation rates are considered adverse economic growth factors. Therefore, this analysis aims to explore the impact of external debt and inflation rate on economic growth in Pakistan by using annual time series data from 1981 to 2020. The study uses the ADF test and ARDL model for data analysis. The analysis shows that external debt and the inflation rate negatively and significantly influence the economic growth in Pakistan. The variables of gross savings and the agriculture sector are found to be positive and significant factors of economic growth. It is concluded that external debt and inflation rates adversely impact Pakistan's economy. Hence, efforts need to be made to better utilize external debt and keep the inflation rate in a single digit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change poses a significant threat to agricultural productivity, especially in regions with vulnerable economies such as Pakistan. This research article aims to explore the multifaceted impacts of climate change on crop yields within the country. By analysing historical climate and crop productivity data of 1977-2016 through the ARDL technique, the study identifies trends and patterns that suggest a strong correlation between climate change and fluctuations in crop productivity. Our findings highlight the need for climate-resilient crop development, improved agricultural technology, and the necessity for adaptive agricultural practices and robust policy interventions to reduce the adverse effects of a changing climate on crop productivity Furthermore, the potential of emerging technologies and farming techniques to enhance resilience in crops production, ensuring a crops supply for Pakistan's growing population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human capital and trade liberalization are playing a central role in growth theories. However, the link between human capital, trade liberalization, and economic growth remains a challenging question due to the inconclusive results of the previous studies. Paper contributes to this debate through asymmetric links among human capital, trade liberalization, and economic growth by incorporating labor and capital for Pakistan's economy by applying the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag model. Results suggest that the positive and negative asymmetric impact of trade liberalization and human capital on growth substantially vary in the short and long run. In the long run, the increased trade liberalization hurts economic growth, while increased human capital has a minimal positive impact on economic growth in the short and long run. The implications of this paper are for economists and policymakers to strengthen the role of human capital and trade liberalization for Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deforestation and forest degradation is a global concern, especially in developing countries. The Margalla Hills of Pakistan—Himalayan foothills—also face the threat of deforestation and forest degradation. These Margalla Hills, considering the need for forest protection activities in Pakistan, were declared a reserved national forest and named "the Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP)". This study quantitively evaluates whether deforestation and forest degradation have occurred at MHNP and identifies their possible drivers. Satellite (Landsat) data 1988–2020 was employed for the land use change analysis, whereas a socio-economic survey of the local population and structured interviews with government officials were conducted to identify the drivers of deforestation. Supervised classification was performed for imagery classification and the Vegetation Condition Index (VCI) was also calculated to measure degradation. Supervised classification showed that the forest cover increased from 65% of the total area in 1988 to 69% in 2020. The VCI results show that the moderate level of degradation has increased from 3.5% of MHNP area in 1988 to 8.8% in 2020. The cumulative measure of degradation from 1988 to 2020 is 1.09% of the total forest (using p < 0.05). Major drivers identified are fuel wood and timber collection. The results reveal a decline in both deforestation and forest degradation. There is a need for further quantitative analysis of the drivers, strict implementation of legislative and control measures, and continuous invigilation of the deforestation trends in MHNP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political instability has become a significant worldwide threat in recent years, especially in the world's poorest and most unstable countries. This is a major problem that is stunting the development of these countries. Politics must be kept stable if society remains united and the government retains its legitimacy. It is necessary for a country's economy to thrive, society to come together, and rule of law to be upheld. The political system's stability has a direct impact on the nation and state-building processes. Political stability is essential for both of them to develop successfully. Political stability is crucial to the efficient running of government. Foreign diplomacy and international trade are both hampered by political instability because investors are reluctant to risk their money in countries with uncertain leadership. As a result of breakdown in law and order and rise in illicit activity, the public becomes increasingly worried and insecure when there is political insecurity in a country. Only political maturity and stability will be able to handle these challenges in the nation's best interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture plays a vital role in the economic development of Pakistan, as it is the main largest source of economy to achieve the targets of economic growth. The objective of this research was to forecast the area and production of wheat crop taking historical data from 1947 to 2021 for Economic Survey, Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan. Initially a linear model ARIMA, through Box-Jenkin’s (1976) methodology was applied to forecast the wheat area and production. Then we compare it with ETS, TBATS, Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and ARIMA-ETS, ARIMA-TBATS, and ARIMA-ANN hybrid models. It was observed that the ARIMA-ANN model show the lowest values for RMSE (214.2673, 921.9103) and MAE (175.470, 710.7325) for both wheat area and production. Forecasting of wheat area and production has been performed till 2030. Ten year average forecast for wheat area under the ARIMA-ANN was 9058.10 and yearly expected wheat area was increased by 2.87 percent each year. Change was computed and revealed that the area of the wheat crop is expected to increase by about 2.87 percent. The average wheat production for the ten-year forecast from the ARIMA-ANN model was 25878.03 and the yearly expected percentage change in the production of wheat was about 2.34 percent to increase. These forecast estimates for wheat crop will be important for the Government in formulating their policies to fulfil the food necessities of the nation, trade, support prices and planning the industrial sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID‐19 is wreaking havoc all around the globe, and Pakistan bears no exception. This study explores Pakistan's response toward controlling COVID‐19 Pandemic from the day the 1st case was reported, February 26, 2020, in Pakistan until August 31, 2020. It explores the administrative conflicts among federal and provincial governments and political behaviors of political parties toward the COVID‐19 pandemic by referring Government Response Index. By applying the ARDL model approach, results show that since the administrative harmony had been implemented in Pakistan in July 2020, its positive impact on combating the COVID‐19 situation in Pakistan and substantial improvement in recovered cases and a downward trend new confirmed and fatal cases has observed in Pakistan. The findings demonstrate that administrative efforts scattered due to internal conflicts from February to mid‐July 2020 have ended, and collective aggressive policy enforcement has been mitigating the adverse impact of COVID‐19 in Pakistan since July to date. However, sustainable measures and prudent policy implications are needed to combat the ongoing COVID‐19 pandemic and future calamities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oil prices not only affect the agricultural commodity directly but also indirectly through different channels. However, among these channels, the most important is the channel of exchange rate. The reason for putting emphasis on the mediating role of exchange rate between the oil prices and food prices nexus is that the oil‐importing counties like Pakistan pay their import bills in terms of foreign currency in the international market which as a result escalates the demand for foreign currency in oil‐importing countries. This study has analyzed the indirect influence of oil prices on food prices via exchange rate. We developed a Composite Index (CI) of the agricultural commodity prices including wheat, cotton, rice, gram, sugar cane, and maize. This index is generated by using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Further, to construct our econometric model, we used mediation approach by applying Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) model. The results indicate a positive relationship between exchange rate and prices of oil. We also found the same relationship between exchange rate and the food prices. In addition to this, we witnessed positive effects of prices of oil on the food prices in the presence of exchange rate. Our study confirms that exchange rate partially mediates between the nexus of oil prices and food prices. Our analysis explains the impact of oil price on agricultural commodity prices through the channel of exchange rate by using time series data of Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the rice price dynamics and their impacts on demand and supply over the time in agricultural markets of Pakistan. Time series data on production and prices for the period 1984-2018 were used to study the cobweb phenomenon in local rice markets. Linear demand and supply models were used to examine the unstable rice-market. Price dynamics were examined through identifying the time path of difference equation derived from demand and supply functions. The results inferred that market prices of rice have remained unstable in agricultural markets of Pakistan over the history. Furthermore, rice prices exhibited damped oscillations towards stable market equilibrium over last three decades in Pakistan. It is suggested that the government may respond promptly to the instability of rice markets by formulating the appropriate agricultural policies, developing state-of-the-art storage facilities and ensuring the steady transmission of market information across the national as well as international rice markets. The study provides deep insights into understanding the on-going and future trends of price fluctuations with respect to demand and supply shocks in rice market of Pakistan. It would greatly help the stakeholders and policy makers in forecasting and stabilizing the rice markets, and alleviating the food insecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is aimed at estimating the role of livestock sector in food security by considering the past trends and future forecasts in livestock population, situation of feed & fodder availability and potential adaptation/mitigation strategies in the epoch of climate change. In this regard, secondary data was collected from World Bank, FAO, Ministry of Finance Pakistan and Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and was analyzed using semi-log model, automatic ARIMA, and Lorenz curve methodology. The results of this study forecasted the increase in the population of cattle, buffalo, goat and camel in near future while forecast about population of sheep shows decrease in its population in coming years. Lorenz curve and Gini coefficient revealed relatively equal distribution in the number of cattle and buffalo among herds than that of sheep and goat. The total area under fodder production' and 'fodder productivity' have a declining trend. The linkages among livestock production index, GNI per capita and consumption expenditure elaborate that the livestock is playing a major role in food security of Pakistan and other neighboring countries (China, India and Bangladesh). Analyzing various adaptation and mitigation strategies in the context of Pakistan revealed that in the era of climate change and food insecurity, this sector could help by wisely adopting cost-effective adaptation/mitigation strategies like educating farmers about managing and altering feed production and consumption techniques. Therefore, maintaining a consistent policy to focus livestock economy on the wake of increasing food security concerns and climate change, a holistic approach is required to make decisions for the uplift of the rural economy in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the International Labor Organization, at least 160 million children ages 5 to 17 around the world were involved in some form of child labor at the beginning of 2020, including 79 million children performing hazardous labor. This article uses recent representative data from Bangladesh and Pakistan to investigate the relationship between foundational skills and child labor engagements for 12- to 14-year-old children. It found a consistent negative association between child labor and reading and numeracy foundational skills. In particular, it found that engagement in hazardous child labor had large negative associations with reading and numeracy foundational skills. It also found negative associations between engagement in economic labor and reading foundational skills. Finally, the article found that intense engagement in household labor was also negatively associated with foundational skills. It discusses the implications of these findings which paint a deeply concerning picture of the challenges ahead of the global community to ensure that all children acquire foundational skills (and beyond). It notes that systematic efforts to define, document, and measure child labor will be crucial to better understand the negative implications of child labor for foundational learning and the potential policy solutions to address these impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article uses propensity score matching techniques to estimate unconditional cash transfer effects on women's labour outcomes in Pakistan. Using two rounds of nationally representative data, we find positive effects for women in recipient households. However, we observe a dip in overall women's employment from the first to the second round. This is likely driven by a downturn in the agriculture sector's performance. Moreover, women in beneficiary households are better able to recover suggesting higher resilience to macroeconomic shocks. Yet, not all our results are positive as women remain vulnerable in their lack of access to non-agriculture earned income. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowing whether poverty rates converge within a country matters for regional development policy and for understanding growth processes. In this paper, we use five poverty measures, calculated biennially from 2004 to 2014 for 100 districts in Pakistan, to test for poverty convergence. Spatial autoregressive models are used to capture spatial spillovers. Conventional money‐metric poverty measures, such as the headcount index and poverty gap index, show unconditional convergence, and the convergence is more apparent if indirect impacts from spillovers are accounted for. In contrast, two multidimensional poverty indices show no convergence and no indirect impacts from spatial spillovers. Catch‐up growth in initially poorer areas is apparent with the money‐metric poverty measures traditionally used in Pakistan but not with the types of multidimensional poverty measures used officially since 2015. This difference in apparent poverty convergence could affect regional development policy choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization in Pakistan is increasing at 3% annually, the highest in South Asia. 50% of the population is expected to urbanize by 2025. The capital city of Pakistan, Islamabad has experienced phenomenal increase in the urban population and extent in the last four decades. The aim of this research was to analyze the urban sprawl of Islamabad and changes in the Land Use and Land Cover (LULC), with the help of satellite images. LULC statics were extracted from Landsat Multi-Spectral Scanner (MSS), Thematic Mapper (TM), Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) and Operational Land Imager (OLI) images, for the years 1979, 1989, 1999, 2008 and 2019. There is an increase of 377 sq. km in built-up areas and slight increase of 47 sq km in the agriculture land. The forest cover has been reduced by 83 sq km and the water bodies have also reduced. The barren land has experienced an unprecedented decrease of 333 sq km in the meanwhile. The master plan is under revision to regularize such uncontrolled constructions and accommodate the increased demand. The city, as a result, has been facing issues of water supply, sanitation, transportation etc. This has seriously jeopardized the master plan of the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the factors that influence the adoption of laser land levelers and their impact on groundwater usage in the Punjab Province of Pakistan. A farm household survey of 504 agriculture producers was conducted in 2019. A discrete‐time duration model is used to investigate factors influencing the speed of adoption and an endogenous switching regression (ESR) model is used to evaluate its impact on groundwater usage. About 70% of the surveyed households adopted the technology, and the average time to adoption was 9 years. Key factors accelerating the speed of adoption include strong legal land rights, access to information about the technology, and exposure to the technology. In contrast, long distance to rental market deaccelerates the speed of adoption. The adoption of laser land leveler reduced groundwater use by about 23%. The results imply that institutional arrangements, such as improving access to extension services, exposure to innovation, and legal land rights, can enhance the adoption and diffusion of the technology and conserve groundwater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to examine the impact of corporate governance proxies by ownership structure on financial constraints for a sample of 215 non-financial Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) listed firms between 2010 and 2018. Design/methodology/approach: The dynamic generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator is used to determine the influence of ownership structure on financial constraints. The ownership structure of sample enterprises is measured using seven variables: managerial, family, institutional, foreign, associated, presence of block holder, and concentrated ownership, while financial limitations are determined using the KZ Index. The WW Index is used to assess the robustness of the results. In addition, for robustness, we also used OLS and FE. Findings: Based on the system GMM results, it was discovered that firm ownership structure has a significant impact on the likelihood of financial constraints. In the case of Pakistan, the results show that institutional ownership, foreign ownership, and the presence of a block holder in the ownership structure have a significant negative impact on financial constraints, whereas family ownership and ownership concentration have a significant positive impact. This finding remains true when financial constraints are measured using the WW Index. Practical implications: The findings of the study provide business managers and investors with more information regarding the relationship between corporate governance quality and the degree of financial constraint in Pakistani firms. Furthermore, this study contributes new information from emerging nations like Pakistan to the existing literature, which will help regulatory bodies and policymakers build long-term corporate governance solutions to manage financial constraints. It is well established that improving the quality of corporate governance practices improves capital market efficiency and lowers the likelihood of financial constraints. Originality/value: The study adds to the body of existing work on corporate governance and the possibility of financial constraints, with a focus on Pakistan. The findings show that when projecting company financial constraints, regulators should pay special attention to the quality of corporate governance, specifically ownership structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The climate variability in Pakistan adversely affects rice crops and undermines the food security and livelihoods of millions of rural households whose survival depends directly on rice farming. This study examines farmers' risk perception, adaptation responses, and adaptation impact on rice productivity. We employed a multi-stage sampling method for selecting 480 farmers from the rice production zone of Punjab province, a region that produces more than 60% of the total rice in the country and faces significant production decline due to climate change. We used the risk matrix method to determine farmers' perception of climate change-induced risk and used the propensity score matching (PSM) technique to analyze the impact of adaptation measures on rice yield and crop returns. Results show that farmers had high perceptions and were concerned about biological and financial risks, followed by biophysical, atmospheric, and social risks. Farmers applied supplementary irrigation, changed rice cultivation dates, changed rice varieties, resized farms, and altered irrigation application times as adaptation measures to cope with changing climate effects. Probit regression analysis showed that the adaptation measures had been largely affected by farmers' socioeconomic attributes and risk perceptions. The PSM estimates showed that all adaptation measures had a positive impact on rice yield and crop return. Specifically, the cultivation of alternative rice varieties, farm resizing, and supplementary irrigation were the most effective strategies, followed by the adjustment in cultivation dates and irrigation time. Having implications beyond Pakistan, this study suggests improving farmers' access to irrigation water, credit, and farm advisory services to facilitate the extent of adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fiscal policy is an essential ingredient of economic performance. The fiscal policy is considered as a short-run measure; however, this has long-lasting outcomes for any economy. The current study has examined the connection among different constituents of fiscal policy, i.e., federal government revenues and federal government expenditures; federal government revenues and different components of federal government expenditures; federal government expenditures and different components of federal government revenues and fiscal deficit and influential budgetary variables in the context of the economy of Pakistan. The study has empirically investigated the relationship among the budgetary variables for Pakistan from 1979 to 2017. For data analysis, time-series econometric techniques such as auto-regressive distributive lag (ARDL) approach and Granger causality test have been employed. The results of ARDL bounds test approach suggest the existence of long-run equilibrium relationship among the variables. The result of CUSUM and CUSUMSQ shows the stability of functional relationship tested in this study, which means that model is a useful instrument for policymaking. So, a rise or fall in budgetary variables causes changes in fiscal deficit in long run. The results of study endorse the proof of spent-and-tax hypothesis in the economy of Pakistan. The study suggests the need for extensive fiscal policy reforms in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The paper examines the differential effect of liquidity constraints on corporate growth using unbalanced panel data for 457 Pakistani firms over the period 2010–2017. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses the probability of a financial unconstrained index constructed by estimating the endogenous regression model. This approach provides a time-varying measure of financial position for all firm-year observations and takes into account the different degrees of liquidity constraints that a company faces in attaining funds from external markets. It is derived from a multivariate selection equation that simultaneously accounts for all-important features of the underlying company identified in the literature. The cash flow variable has then interacted with various groups of dummy variables for financial constraint, which allows the coefficient of cash flow to vary across firm-year observations in the different liquidity constraint categories. The two-step system-GMM estimator is applied to estimate the main empirical model. Findings: The results of the study provide evidence of the heterogeneity in firms' growth sensitivity to internal funds, depending on the degree of liquidity constraints. Financing growth through internal funds is found to be essential for both liquidity unconstrained and constrained corporates. However, it is observed that the coefficient of cash flow is greater for firms that do not have access to external financing and it eventually decreases with reductions in the magnitude of liquidity constraints, making the least constrained corporates' growth less responsive to internal funds. The results further indicate that smaller and younger firms show higher responsiveness of growth to internal funds. This finding is mainly attributed to financial market imperfections that make external funding difficult for them. Practical implications: The results suggest that financially constrained firms should expand their corporate size more than the magnitude of positive income shocks they encounter. The study also suggests important policy implications for liquidity-constrained firms to carefully concentrate on their financing strategies to enhance their growth. By improving the corporate's capacity for production, corporates can achieve a faster effect of a potential positive income shock on their growth. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the literature by constructing a financial constraint index by running the endogenous regression model. It also contributes by investigating the differential impact of credit constraints on firms' growth in Pakistan and how corporate size and age affect firm growth when financial constraints and investment opportunities are controlled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research is to evaluate the disparity in the intergovernmental fiscal transfers to the sub-national governments, in the last four NFC awards specifically in the 7thNFC award in Pakistan. This study measures the disparity by employing two different approaches. Firstly coefficient of variation (C.V) approach i.e. variation in the regional own-source revenues to the variation in the total resource of regional government after inclusion of federal transfer and the own-source revenue, secondly, In addition, to estimate the impact of intergovernmental transfers on the fiscal disparity among the sub-national government this study uses panel data technique i.e. least square dummy variable (LSDV). The Results of fiscal disparity reflect that in Pakistan the disparity in combined regional own source revenue increases from 0.52 to 0.83 points during the last four NFC awards. However, at the sub-national level, the values of disparity remain constant at 0.16 in Sindh province which reflects fiscal efforts for the collection of own-source revenues among provinces. In contrast to this, the disparity increases in KPK, and its value reaches 0.240 in the existing award. The results of the empirical analysis also reveal that when the intergovernmental transfer increases by 1 percent the disparity ratio increases by 1.19percent. While the expenditure of the government increases the disparity at the sub-national level as the positive sign of the model reflects. Based on the findings this study suggests that Pakistan still needs to devise a revenue-sharing formula that encourages the efforts of optimal resource generation from the regional governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participatory financing schemes, including Musharakah and Mudarabah, are theoretically claimed to be the ideal modes of Islamic financing, but their practice is restrained by several factors. That is why Islamic banks have a consistent tendency to avoid participatory financing on the assets side throughout the world. However, recently this trend has started changing in Pakistan and Indonesia where the share of participatory finance has raised significantly in the financing portfolio of Islamic banks. The present paper explores this recent spur of participatory finance in Pakistan in terms of its domains of applications and the responsible factors. The findings lead to a novel posteriori framework which shows that the shift toward participatory financing is primarily characterized by increase in working capital financing and commodity operations financing through Musharakah mode Islamic banks. Moreover, five factors contribute to the spur of participatory financing including: (i) introducing varieties in Musharakah, (ii) enhanced applicability, (iii) high volume projects, (iv) government interventions, and (v) regulator's role. The framework can significantly advance understanding with respect to the implementation theory of participation financing within Islamic banking and related Shariah compliance and regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze short-term effects of free hospitalization insurance for the poorest quintile of the population in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. First, we exploit that eligibility is based on an exogenous poverty score threshold and apply a regression discontinuity design. Second, we exploit imperfect rollout and compare insured and uninsured households using propensity score matching. With both methods we fail to detect significant effects on the incidence of hospitalization. Whereas the program did not meaningfully increase the quantity of health care consumed, insured households more often choose private hospitals, indicating a shift towards higher perceived quality of care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the determinants of participation and performance in post‐compulsory education, controlling for selection into post‐compulsory education and prior attainment, using a unique primary data set on pupils studying in the post‐compulsory grade in 2011–2012 from one district of Punjab province in Pakistan. The main findings of this paper show that participation and performance in post‐compulsory education are two different processes, with participation being driven by the availability of post‐compulsory institutions within travel distance and performance, once in post‐compulsory education, determined by ability. The results further highlight that distance reduces participation most for those living in rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine two Pakistani programs to see if the public disclosure of tax information and social recognition of top taxpayers promotes tax compliance. Pakistan began revealing income tax paid by all taxpayers in 2012. Simultaneously, another program began recognizing and rewarding the top 100 tax- paying corporations, partnerships, self-employed individuals, and wage earners. We find that the public disclosure caused an increase of 9 log points and the social recognition program 17 log points in the tax payments of agents exposed to the program. Our results suggest that such programs can be important policy levers to mobilize additional resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]