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Travel Guide
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia and the Greater Middle East. It has a thousand-kilometre coastline along the Arabian Sea in the south and borders Afghanistan and Iran to the west, India to the east and the People's Republic of China in the far northeast.
Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world and
is the second most populous Muslim country. It was established
as a modern state in 1947, as one of the two parts of the partitioned
British India, but the region has a long history of settlement
and civilisation including the Indus Valley Civilization. The
region was invaded by Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, Mongols,
Afghans, and was incorporated into the British Raj in the nineteenth
century. Since independence, Pakistan has experienced both periods
of significant military and economic growth, and periods of
instability, with the secession of East Pakistan (present-day
Bangladesh). Pakistan is a declared nuclear weapons state.
EconomyPakistan is a rapidly developing country which has faced a number of challenges on both political and economic fronts. Despite being a very poor country in 1947, Pakistan's economic growth rate was better than the global average during the subsequent four decades, but imprudent policies led to a slowdown in the late 1990's. Recently, wide-ranging economic reforms have resulted in a stronger economic outlook and accelerated growth especially in the manufacturing and financial services sectors. There has been great improvement in the foreign exchange position and rapid growth in hard currency reserves in recent years.
The 2005 estimate of foreign debt was close to US$40 billion.
However, this has decreased in recent years with assistance
from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and significant debt-relief
from the United States. Pakistan's gross domestic product, as
measured by purchasing power parity (PPP), is estimated to be
US$439.7 billion while its per capita income (PCI) stands at
$2,803. Despite clear progress, reports by the Asian Development
Bank, the World Bank and the UN Development Program place the
poverty rate in Pakistan between 23-28 percent Pakistan's GDP
growth rates have seen a steady increase over the last 5 years.
However, inflationary pressures and a below per savings rate,
among other economic factors, could make it difficult to sustain
a high growth rate according to some analysts.
Demographics
Pakistan has an estimated population of 165,803,560, as of April 2006. Pakistan has the world's sixth largest population, placing it higher than Russia, and lower than Brazil. Because of Pakistan's high growth rate, it is expected to surpass Brazil in population in the year 2020. Population projections for Pakistan are relatively difficult because of the apparent differences in the accuracy of each census and the inconsistencies between various surveys related to fertility rate, but it is likely that the rate of growth peaked in the 1980s. The population was estimated at 162,400,000 on July 1, 2005, with a fertility rate of 34 per thousand, a death rate of 10 per thousand, and the rate of natural increase at 2.4%. Pakistan also has a high infant mortality rate of 70 per thousand births.
Society and culture
The national dress of Shalwar Kameez is originally a Sindhi dress, however, mostly it is worn in all parts of Pakistan. The sari is another national dress that is worn by many women in Sindh and parts of Pakistan. Women wear brightly coloured shalwar qameez, while men often wear solid-coloured ones.
Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation
Pakistan Travel Directory
Visa & Related Information
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Flag of Pakistan
Capital
Islamabad
Largest city
Karachi
Total Area
803,940 km sq (36th)
Population
(2006 estimate)
165,803,560
GDP
(2006 estimate)
$439.7 billion
Currency
Rupee (Rs.) (PKR)
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