By Farooq Awan

Female-headed agricultural households accounted for less than 1% of Pakistan’s farms in the Agricultural Census 2024, showing a wide gender gap in the country’s recorded farm structure.

According to the Agricultural Census 2024 National Report of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, available with Wealth Pakistan, 80,278 farms were recorded under female heads of households out of a national total of 11.104 million farms. Male-headed households accounted for 11.023 million farms.

The figure matters because agriculture is a major source of livelihood in Pakistan, but women’s role in farming is often less visible in formal land, farm and household records. Census data by the gender of the household head provides policymakers with one way to understand how well women are represented in recorded farm operations.

The report shows that female-headed farms accounted for 283,676 acres of farm area out of Pakistan’s total farm area of 59.301 million acres. Their cultivated area stood at 255,597 acres out of a total cultivated area of 52.788 million acres.

Punjab had the highest number of farms recorded under female-headed households, at 34,292. Sindh followed closely with 30,979, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded 12,374. Balochistan had 2,524 such farms, while Islamabad Capital Territory had 109.

In terms of farm area, female-headed farms accounted for 119,481 acres in Punjab, 82,478 acres in Sindh, 54,261 acres in Balochistan, 27,232 acres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 223 acres in Islamabad Capital Territory.

The cultivated area recorded under female-headed households was 111,987 acres in Punjab, 74,191 acres in Sindh, 49,296 acres in Balochistan, 19,900 acres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 223 acres in Islamabad Capital Territory.

The data should be read carefully. It does not mean women are absent from agricultural labour or livestock work. Rather, it shows that very few farms are formally recorded under female heads of households in the census classification. Women may still be involved in sowing, harvesting, livestock care, fodder collection, dairy work and post-harvest activities without being reflected as farm heads.

For policymakers, the numbers raise questions about women’s access to land, credit, extension services, machinery, livestock support and climate-resilient farming programmes. If farm support schemes are linked mainly to recorded household heads or formal farm operators, women may be underrepresented in access to benefits.

The census finding therefore matters beyond statistics. It highlights the need to design agriculture programmes that recognise women’s actual role in the rural economy, even where formal farm records remain overwhelmingly male-headed.

Credit: INP-WealthPk