Worse still, these economic losses may hit the vulnerable households disproportionately and exacerbate existing structural inequities. According to World Bank statistics, as much as 71% of Pakistan’s non-farm labour is employed in the informal sector. Some of the sectors worst-hit by the crisis, such as retail, transport, hospitality and tourism account for a large proportion of this informal labour force. These are predominantly low-income, less educated workers who constitute the bulk of Pakistan’s 58% vulnerable labour force. The aggregate impact of this crisis may, therefore, be a general impoverishment of these informal workers and an increase in inequality between formal and informal income.

Source: The Express Tribune April 06, 2020 04:18 UTC