HUMAN RESOURCES

Meaning of human resources

        

  Human resources refer to the size of population of a country along with its efficiency, educational qualities, productivity, organizational abilities and farsightedness..

          The population of a country portrays a double faced phenomenon. It is on the one hand an asset and a vital factor in the development process of a country. On the other hand, its rapid growth has hampered development in many less developing countries of the world including Pakistan. The role of human resources to economic development can be better understood if it is studied from two different aspects. (a) Quantitative aspect and (b) Qualitative aspects.

(a)   Quantitative aspects of population in Pakistan:

The quantitative aspects of population includes the statistics of total population, growth of population, density of population, birth and death rates, migration etc. we now briefly examine the demographic structures or the human balance sheet of our country.

1.          Total population. Pakistan’s current population in 2011-12 (1^stJuly) is estimated at 180.71 million.

2.          Population growth. Pakistan’s population was only 32.5 million at the time of independence and we have added about 148.21 million more people since then. The population growth rate has been decelerating over time as shown below.

period	PGR(%)
1951-61	2.45
1961-72	3.66
1972-81	3.05
1981-98	2.69
2010-11	2.05
2011-12	2.03

                    

                               Source: Pakistan economic survey 2011-12

There are three important variables which directly affect the opposition numbers (a) death (b) birth and (c) migration,

(a)   Crudedeath rate. For the last over three decades, there has been a rapid fall in the death rates due to progress in medical science. The disease like cholera, malaria, small pox, typhoid, have been greatly controlled. They used to take a heavy toll of life. The provision of hospitals in villages and cities, the improved health environments and better nourishment have helped in lowering the death rates. The crude death rate has come down from 30 in 1947 to 7.3 per thousand population in July 2010-11 and 7.2 in July 2011-12. A crude of death rate of less than 10 per thousand is considered low and above 20 as high.

(b)   Crude birth rate. The average annual number of birth per thousand persons at mid-year is known as the crude birth rate. A CBR of more than 30 per thousand is considered high and less than 18 per thousand as low in 2011 the global crude birth rate was 20 per thousand and in Pakistan it was 27.2 per thousand since its creation Pakistan has experienced a high rate of population growth. In 1950 Pakistan was the 13^th largest country in the world and in 2011 it is moved up to the 6^th position. According to the world bank projections it is likely to become the fifth largest country by 2050.

The increase in population in Pakistan is due to multiple factors. They , in brief, are,

1.          Warm climate where puberty is attained at a comparativelyearly age.

2.          The practice of early marriage.

3.          Joint family system.

4.          Polygamy.

5.          absence of recreational facilities.

6.          Brief that God is ‘Razik’ i.e. . the sustainer.

7.          Low standard of living. People are not afraid of a further fall as a result of large number of children.

8.          General illiteracy. People are not aware of the economic distress caused by the higher birth rate.

9.          Large family is regarded a power to influence and subdue the people around them.

10.      Lack of consciousness for the adoption of family planning measures etc.

11.      Drop it death rate.

12.      Illegal immigration in the country.

© Migration to Pakistan. The migration of afghan refugees to Pakistan which has declined now is also adversely affecting the labour market and the economy of Pakistan.

3.          Population density. The term density of of population refers to the average number of persons living per square kilometer. It is found out by dividing the total area by the number of persons living there. The density of population differs from country to country and even within country. The density of population varies from region to region. The density of population depends upon a number of factors such as climate, fertility of land, rain, irrigation system, soil, peace and security in the area, availability of means of communication and transport, development of trade and industry, mineral resources etc. if in a region, the climate is healthy, the land is fertile, the means of communication and transport are developed, there is peace and security, the rain is timely etc, the region will have a high density of population. In case, the land is barren, rain scanty, mineral scarce, technology under developed, and there is also no security of life and properly, the number of people living per square kilometer will be small.

the prosperity or adversity of a country cannot be judged from density of population. A country with high density of population may or may not be prosperous. Belgium and bangle dash, for instance, have nearly the same density of population but there is a vast difference in the per capita income of both the countries. Similarly, an area of low density of population may be finding it difficult to meet the bare necessities of life and the other enjoying all amenities of life. Egypt and Canada have density of population. But there is much difference in the standard of living of the people in both the countries. The density of population in Pakistan according to the 1998 census was 166 persons per square kilometer.

4.          Distribution of population: The study of distribution of population between the urban and rural areas in the country is very essential for the planners. As a country develops, there is a shift of population from rural to urban areas because cities provide better job opportunities in the expanding industrial and commercial sector. A country like Pakistan, whose economy is agrarian, cannot afford the shifting of large number of people from rural to urban areas as urbanization involves heavy expenditure which we cannot afford at present.

There is no doubt that sectorial mobility is an important characteristics of the development process, but we can devise other measures lessening the influx of rural population to urban areas. The villages should be connected with roads. The small scale industry would be encouraged and properly organized in the areas rural. The technical know-how, education and health facilities should also be made available to them. The villagers should also share in building up the infrastructure.

5.         Distributionof population by age: (a) the study of population by age and sex is very important as it reveals the effective working population in a country. If a country has large proportion of earning members, its income per capita will be high. Higher per capita income helps in breaking  through the vicious circle of poverty. In Pakistan, about 60% of the population is dependents.

(B) Qualitative Aspects of population:

       

        We have briefly discussed the qualitative aspects of population in Pakistan. In the past, the sheer size of the population was receiving attention and the qualitative aspects was ignored by the economists. It was probably assumed that people living in tropical areas are of inferior types and not capable and willing to improve their standard of living .