New Survey Reveals Financial Hardships Across the Demographics
A recent national survey shows how the Rising living costs in Pakistan has become the most common cause of borrowing in 2024, and it is a problem that cuts across the board. The Financial Inclusion Survey (K-FIS) conducted by Karandaaz Pakistan once in every decade with the assistance of the Gates Foundation and the UK FCDO revealed that 12 percent of Pakistani adults borrowed to meet higher costs.
The highest borrowing rate is 15 percent among self-employed people. Close behind are blue-collar workers and housewives with 14% each. Adults with disabilities are also under financial strain, 12 percent of them require loans. These statistics indicate the impact of increasing living expenses on a broad spectrum of working and non-working people. Conversely, urban dwellers (8%), white-collar employees (7%), and students (2%) indicate less need of loans because of day-to-day costs.
Job Loss, Medical Bills, & Climate Disasters Add to Borrowing Needs
The cost of healthcare has led to 7 percent of adult Pakistanis taking loans, with the unemployed with disabilities (16 percent) being the most strained. Blue-collar and unemployed workers both reported a 10% borrowing rate due to medical needs. Rural residents (8%) needed loans more frequently than urban residents (6%) in this category. The least burden of borrowing healthcare was experienced by white-collar workers (3%) and students (1%).
6 percent of Pakistani adults took loans due to loss of employment or income. The blue-collar workers (10%) were the most affected, followed by the self-employed (7%), unemployed people (6%), and housewives (6%). The least dependent on borrowing because of job loss were white-collar workers (4%), retired people (2%), and students (1%). Both rural and urban populations reported an equal need for loans at 6%.
Other borrowing reasons include marriage expenses (3%), climate-related losses such as crop failure (3%), property damage (2%), education costs (1.5%), and earthquake-related loss (0.1%).
