Demography
The majority of Pakistan's population (in total -- over 150 million) lives along the Indus River valley and along an arc formed by the cities of Faisalabad, Lahore, Rawalpindi/Islamabad and Peshawar. Karachi is the most highly populated urban center.
Religion
Islam is the state religion, and 97 percent of the population follows this religion. Christianity, Hinduism and Parsi (a Zoroastrian sect) make up the minority religions.
Language
Although the official language of Pakistan is Urdu, it is spoken as a first language by just under 10 percent of the population; almost 50 percent of the population speak Punjabi, between 10 and 15 percent speak Sindhi, and while just under 30 percent speak other languages (including Pushtu, Saraiki, Baloch, Brahui). Urdu, Punjabi, Pushtu and Baloch are Indo-European languages; Brahui is believed to have Dravidian (pre-Indo-European) origins. English is widely used within the government, the military and in many institutions of higher learning.
Ethnicity
Pakistan's ethnic makeup consists of Punjabis, Sindhis, Pashtuns, Afghans, Balochs, and Muhajirs.
Literacy
In terms of literacy, rates average at around 49.9 percent, however the average number does not reflect the wide gender divide. Literacy in Pakistan ranges from approximately 36 percent of the female population to 63 percent of the male population, age 15 and over.
Life Expectancy
The population of Pakistan has a life expectancy at birth of 64.13 years (63.07 for males, and 65.24 for females), according to recent figures. The current growth rate has tended to be slightly higher than other populous countries of the world today at 1.8 percent . Pakistan has an infant mortality rate of 66.95 deaths/1,000 live births, according to recent figures.
Human Development
About 2.7 percent of GDP is spent on educational expenditures in this country; about 2.6 percent of GDP is spent on health expenditures. Access to water and sanitation is adequate in urban areas; however, access is poor in rural areas.
One notable indicator used to measure a country's quality of life is the Human Development Index (HDI), which is compiled annually since 1990 by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The HDI is a composite of several indicators, which measure a country's achievements in three main areas of human development: longevity, knowledge and education, as well as economic standard of living. In a recent ranking of 169 countries, the HDI placed Pakistan at the low end of the medium human development category, at 125th place.
Note: Although the concept of human development is complicated and cannot be properly captured by values and indices, the HDI, which is calculated and updated annually, offers a wide-ranging assessment of human development in certain countries, not based solely upon traditional economic and financial indicators.