Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Pakistan: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna grade (MCB, ranked #104 of 195).
Pakistan — in Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north. Political status: federal parliamentary republic. The country's capital is Islamabad; it covers 796,095 sq km. Independence: 14 August 1947 (from British India). Terrain: divided into three major geographic areas: the northern highlands, the Indus River plain in the center and east, and the Balochistan Plateau in the south and west. Climate: mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north. Population: 257.0 million (2025 estimate). Population growth: +1.82% per year. Median age: 23.2 years. Life expectancy: 70.3 years (2024 est.). Lan…
| Capital | Islamabad |
|---|---|
| Population | 257,047,044 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $1.39 trillion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $5,500 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 3.2% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 12.6% |
| Unemployment | 5.5% |
| Public debt | 67.6% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Exports | $40.219 billion (2024 est.) |
| Imports | $66.844 billion (2024 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 70.3 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 23.2 |
| Urbanization | 38% of total population (2023) |
| Government | federal parliamentary republic |
| Independence | 14 August 1947 (from British India) |
| Languages | Punjabi 38.8%, Pashto (alternate name, Pashtu) 18.2%, Sindhi 14.6%, Saraiki (a Punjabi variant) 12.2%, Urdu 7.1%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2.4%, Brahui 1.2%, other 2.4% |
MCB · 47/100 — The Magna grade is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — five dimensions, 100+ indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
Steadiness was the quarter's defining trait: no rupture, no windfall, no surprise strong enough to move the score.
The trajectory remains set by fundamentals that change over years, not quarters — and this quarter changed little.
Natural gas, Oil, Iron ore, Copper, Salt.
Shehbaz Sharif — Prime Minister. President Asif Ali ZARDARI (since 10 March 2024)
Pakistan maintains 89 embassies and 29 consulates abroad, holds permanent missions to EU Brussels, UN Geneva, UN New York, UNESCO Paris, UN Vienna. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 89 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 29 |
| Multilateral missions | EU Brussels, UN Geneva, UN New York, UNESCO Paris, UN Vienna |
Source: Outbound: Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index 2024 (via Wikipedia 'List of countries by number of diplomatic missions'). Multilateral: Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions of Pakistan' (multilateral section via en-academic mirror of older snapshot).
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 1046 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 117 + 48 heliports (registration prefix AP) |
| Major seaports | Gwadar, Karachi, Muhamamad Bin Qasim |
| Railways | 11881 km |
| Pipelines | 13,452 km gas transmission and 177,029 km gas distribution, 3,663 km oil, 1,150 km refined products (2022) |
| Top container ports (TEU) | Karachi (2,097,855 TEU, 2019) |
Allama Iqbal International Airport (LHE) — Lahore; Bacha Khan International Airport (PEW) — Peshawar; Faisalabad International Airport (LYP) — Faisalabad; Islamabad International Airport (ISB) — Attock; Jinnah International Airport (KHI) — Karachi; Multan International Airport (MUX) — Multan; New Gwadar International Airport (GWD) — Gurandani; Quetta International Airport (UET) — Quetta; Sialkot International Airport (SKT) — Sialkot; Skardu International Airport (KDU) — Skardu.
Showing 10 of 15 major airports.
| LNG import terminals | Port Qasim |
|---|
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | federal parliamentary republic |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
MCB · 47 Ranked #104 of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Pakistan.
Historical timeline of Pakistan
