Islamabad, August 9, 2025 – The Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment (BEOE), operating under the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (MOP&HRD), has announced that 131,817 foreign jobs are currently available for Pakistani workers.
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Overseas Pakistanis Foundation provides toolkits to returning expatriates
ISLAMABAD: Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) has distributed toolkits to returning expatriates in various trades as an in-kind support to help them start sustained self-employment.
The toolkits were presented at a ceremony held here on Tuesday to as many as 80 returning migrants in trades including electrician, plumber, carpenter, and mason, who have also completed comprehensive business development training at the Pakistani-German Facilitation & Reintegration Centre (PGFRC), Lahore.
OPF Managing Director Dr. Amer Sheikh, GIZ officials, members of Senate and National Assembly Standing Committees on Overseas Pakistanis and HRD, Members, OPF Board of Governors, representatives of international organizations and civil society also attended the ceremony.
The activity is part of the OPF efforts to support returning migrants to make a new start in Pakistan and achieve a sustainable employment. OPF is implementing a program on economic reintegration of returnees in collaboration with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in Pakistan.
It is commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation & Development Germany, (BMZ) and is part of BMZ support for voluntary return and sustainable reintegration.
In his remarks, Dr. Amer Sheikh shared that an MoU between German and Pakistan governments has been formalized which is the start of a new dawn in the area of support to the returning migrants.
This arrangement will support in counselling and introduction to employment or entrepreneurship measures.
Addressing the audience, Dr. Mansoor Zaib Khan, Head of PGFRC, informed that the Centre is open to all Pakistanis and all our services are free of charge.
PGFRC is providing advice on training and skills development, technical and vocational training, advice on job market trends and opportunities, advice on finding a job in Pakistan, entrepreneurship and start-up support, psychosocial support, and information on the health system in Pakistan, information on living conditions and advice on getting microfinance and loans, he explained.
He informed that more than 800 returning migrants in the trades of electrician, plumber, carpenter, and mason will benefit from this capacity building leading to in-kind support intervention.
Country Director GIZ, Mr. Tobias Becker, said on the occasion that the PGFRC is playing a critical role in fostering self-employment and entrepreneurship. These efforts are resulting in enhancing the capacity of workforce and reducing unemployment rates in Pakistan, he added.
Moreover, he said, it not only helps to contribute to the better life and wellness of returning migrants but also achieve the Agenda 2030 as well as Sustainable Development Goals.
He explained several Pakistanis migrate abroad to work, but at some point, in their lives, they return to the country and struggle to re-establish themselves and make a respectable living.
Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted Pakistanis living in other countries, resulting in huge layoffs and the return and repatriation of tens of thousands of migrants from their intended destinations.
When they return, they are very concerned about their job prospects. In these times of trial, the PGFRC is the platform for these returnees to seek guidance and support, he maintained.
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Over 100,000 potential overseas job losses for Pakistanis due to COVID
KARACHI: The official estimates of Bureau of Immigration and Overseas Employment (BEOE) revealed that over 100,000 overseas job for which the recruitment process was going on in Pakistan, was disrupted due to COVID and is not going to recover unless the recruiting projects are revived.
The bureau categorizes this category as a potential loss, according to a report of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) released on Wednesday.
According to the official estimates of BEOE, more than 8.8 million Pakistanis were living abroad as of December 2017. Of these, 54 percent resided in the Gulf region, and the rest in other destinations, including Europe, UK, US, Canada, and Australia.
Furthermore, during the last three years, around 1.7 million people left for different destinations, of which around 98 percent proceeded for employment in the Gulf region and only a small fraction went to acquire permanent residency in high-income countries.
During the Covid-19 crisis, BEOE records reveal multiple channels of potential job losses for migrant Pakistanis.
Around 50,000 Pakistani migrants faced layoffs in different countries. These jobs may not be recovered in the short term and are thus extremely vulnerable.
Around 60,000 Pakistanis were recruited for overseas work, but could not proceed abroad due to travel restrictions and suspension of flight operations. The Bureau also categorizes these jobs as extremely vulnerable.
In addition to these, 50,000 emigrants (Azaad Visa excluded) returned on paid/unpaid leaves as of June 2020. These workers have not been laid off, but their job continuation entails risk.
For most of the returning workers, the lockdowns resulted in permanent cessation of income along with the loss of legal status and end of accommodation and health benefits associated with employment. In case of forced dismissals, workers also did not receive compensation, and other dues and therefore found it difficult to arrange travel expenses on their own.
The recent figure of stranded Pakistanis in different destinations is highly skewed towards the Gulf region with more than 91 percent in only two countries, i.e., Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
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Cabinet approves 20pc increase for EOBI pensioners
In a significant move, the federal cabinet has approved a landmark 20% increase in pensions for over 450,000 pensioners of the Employees Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI).
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Careem asked to facilitate expatriates
Careem Pakistan has been urged to provide concessions to expatriate Pakistanis at the time of using the services within the country.
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Remittances grow by 10pc to $10.7 billion in July – December
Overseas Pakistani workers have continued to make a significant contribution to the country’s economy, with remittances totaling $10.719 billion during the first half of the fiscal year 2018-2019 (July to December).
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