What happened: On March 23, Prime Minister Imran Khan praised his government for managing the COVID-19 situation better than all the South Asian countries in the region as Pakistan resulted in having the lowest unemployment rate. Click here to see the premiere’s tweet and unemployment statistic shared by South Asian Index. Details: “I want to congratulate my government for the way we handled the COVID-19 pandemic – better than all the countries,” PM Khan stated in a tweet. The tweet was in reaction to a poll by South Asia Index, which found that Pakistan outranked other South Asian countries with the lowest unemployment rates, based on World Bank data. The poll: According to the poll, Pakistan has a 4.3 percent unemployment rate, compared to 8% in India, 6.3 percent in the Maldives, 5.4 percent in Bangladesh, 5.9 percent in Sri Lanka, 5 percent in Bhutan, and 5 percent in Nepal (4.7 pc). What you need to know: Prior to COVID-19, the working population in Pakistan was 35 percent (55.75 million) according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. However, during the pandemic, the number of people who lost their employment or were unable to work fell to 35.04 million. The government announced a plan for the construction industry in July 2020. Thus, the recovery of the economy was aided by the establishment of sectors where daily wagers could be made, as well as fiscal and monetary support. It was then claimed that 33% (52.56 million) of people returned to work.