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The Digital Economic Census 2023, released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on August 21, presents clear results. The census records 600,403 mosques and 23,000 factories across Pakistan. The survey counts 7.14 million economic establishments and a workforce of 25.4 million people. The services sector employs 11.4 million workers, which is 45 percent of the total. The production sector employs 5.6 million workers, which is 22 percent of the total. These facts show that jobs in Pakistan are driven by services and small-scale production rather than by formal industry.
Religious Density
Places of worship and local outlets shape towns and cities. According to the census, there are 36,331 religious institutes, 242,616 schools, and 119,789 hospitals. There are 2.7 million retail trading businesses and 188,000 wholesale trading premises. Residential structures make up 79.4 percent of all buildings. The data show that small service outlets and community institutions are the most common economic units. This pattern influences local demand for goods and for services, and it defines many household livelihoods.
Industrial Shortfall
Manufacturing establishments number 696,558, with 643,000 small production units and only 23,000 formal factories. Most firms are small. Some 7.14 million establishments employ between one and fifty people, while just 7,086 units employ more than 250 workers. Punjab hosts 58 percent of establishments and a workforce of 13.6 million. Sindh has 5.7 million workers, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has 4.0 million workers. The census highlights clear barriers that limit firm growth and that prevent scaling to higher value manufacturing.
Policy Action
The geo-tagged data and sector coding provide a basis for targeted policy. Converting micro production into formal factories will require targeted credit, stable power, streamlined registration, and skills training. The government must use the census to expand industrial zones, improve logistics, and now also to raise the quality of jobs. Private investors and provincial governments must align incentives with infrastructure spending and with training programs. International partners can support technology transfer and financing for factory upgrades. The census is an evidence-based tool that must guide policy and investment to create more formal factories and better jobs.
