diff --git a/base/ncurses/ncurses.conf b/base/ncurses/ncurses.conf
index 49afa7f57..b293a8371 100644
--- a/base/ncurses/ncurses.conf
+++ b/base/ncurses/ncurses.conf
@@ -177,4 +177,9 @@ else
 	else
 		hook_add postmake 6 "make_termcap_symlinks"
 	fi
+
+	# generate and install .pc files for pkg-config
+	if pkginstalled pkgconfig; then
+		var_append extraconfopt " " "--enable-pc-files"
+	fi
 fi