Economics of Female Labor Force Participation: Overcoming Barriers in Pakistan

Abstract

The active participation of females in the labor force advances gender equality and empowers them to access economic opportunities. The thesis empirically investigates the dynamics of female labor force participation and certain barriers women face in the Pakistan’s labor market. <br /> The first study examines the patterns and causes of female labor force participation in Pakistan by constructing a synthetic panel data set spanning three decades of nationally representative labor force surveys (1990-2017). First, the study performs a decomposition analysis to examine the contribution of demographic changes to changes in female labor force participation. Second, the study employs Age-Period-Cohort analysis to explain differences in the female labor force participation across different life stages, years, and birth cohorts. The findings reveal that the shift in age structure contributed to just 0.048 percent of the total 7.46 percent increase in aggregate participation rate from 1990-2017. Cohort effects indicate an increase in labor force participation among cohorts born after the 1950s, particularly among married females and those with the lower levels of education. <br /> The second study investigates the gender and rural-urban (female) digital divide along with analysing the association between digitalization and female labor force participation in Pakistan. Using nationally representative Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement Survey (2019-2020), the study employs Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition and instrumental variable approach respectively. The results suggests that institutional and sociocultural norms are the primary factors (0.397 unit of the 0.5 unit gap) explaining the divide in mobile or smartphone ownership between men and women. However, the differences in observable characteristics account (0.152 unit of the 0.205 unit gap) for the digital divide between rural and urban areas among females. Furthermore, employing an instrumental variable approach reveals that mobile or smartphone ownership increases female labor force participation (36.2 % points). <br /> The third study employs a mixed-method approach to analyse the impact of mass transit and ride-hailing services on female labor force participation in Lahore, Pakistan. Using a synthetic control methodology and labor force surveys covering a period of two decades (1999-2020), the study quantify the impact of mass transit and ride-hailing services on female labor force participation. The findings indicate that the introduction of mass transit has results in a modest increase (1 %) in female labor force participation when compared to the synthetic equivalent. However, ride-hailing services do not demonstrate any significant impact. Using primary data collected in Lahore during July-August 2022, the qualitative analysis findings highlights the substantial impact of spatial mismatch on women’s mobility choices. Notably, considerations of time-saving and safety concerns emerge as crucial factors influencing women’s choices among various transportation modes. Furthermore, the study reveals a lack of gender-sensitive transport planning in Pakistan, as authorities report that transportation infrastructure is primarily geared towards the general population and does not adequately consider the diverse needs of various demographic groups.