2% of Pakistani Women Own Land

A recent survey by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) has found that only 2% of women in Pakistan own land, highlighting a significant gender gap in land ownership and economic empowerment.

The survey also reveals that 67% of employed women in Pakistan work in agriculture, yet only 1.5% of agricultural households are formally recorded as female-headed. This disparity is further reflected in the fact that only about 2% of ever-married women aged 15-49 own land alone or jointly, while 97.2% have not inherited land or a house.

The gender gap in land ownership is particularly pronounced in the province of Sindh, where 99.1% of women do not own land alone or jointly. This lack of economic empowerment is compounded by a significant financial and digital gender gap, with 56% of men having a full-service financial account compared to just 14% of women, and mobile-wallet ownership standing at 48% among men and 11% among women.

## Why it matters The need for solutions to address this gender gap is becoming increasingly urgent as climate risks intensify. The 2022 floods in Pakistan resulted in more than $30 billion in damage and economic losses, with at least $16.3 billion estimated to be required for resilient reconstruction. Strengthening the rural economy, particularly agriculture and livestock, is essential to strengthening the broader economy, and addressing the gender gap in land ownership and economic empowerment is a critical part of this process.

The SDPI study highlights the importance of recognizing the contributions of women in agriculture, with half of the country's population remaining largely unrecognised as active agricultural workers. Partnerships with institutions like Mobilink Bank, with their access to large-scale customer data, are vital to sustaining this line of research and developing solutions to address the gender gap in land ownership and economic empowerment.