ISLAMABAD: The Senate Stand­ing Committee on Overseas Pakist­a­nis was informed about deplorable standard of Pakistani workforce, ma­­inly in the Gulf region, has led to the shif­ting of preferences by Gulf employers to hire workforce from other regional cou­ntries, such as Bangladesh, instead of Pakistan.

The Senate committee meeting, chaired by Senator Zeeshan Khanzada, stressed that the government was ignoring the potentials available in this sector.

After facing criticism from members of the committee regarding failure of the government to harness potentials of Pakistani diaspora, the secretary of Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource De­­velopment, Dr Arshad Mahmood, presented a bleak picture of the situation of Pakistan labour force in Gulf countries.

The committee was further informed that UAE authorities have recently expressed concern over inappropriate behaviour of some Pakistanis in their country, which includes making videos of women in Dubai without their consent.

The secretary of the ministry said there was a declining trend in overseas employment for Pakistani labour force as despite modernisation and advancement in technology a significant portion of the Pakistani labour force remains unskilled.

The committee was informed that lack of resources and skill development of Pakistani labour force has resulted in replacement of Pakistani workers from other countries.

Dr Mahmood said that skilled labour force from countries such as Bangladesh serves as an inspiration and Pakistan needs to follow suit.

The secretary said that Pakistani diaspora includes 10.7 million individuals, primarily working in Saudi Arabia, UAE, US, UK and Canada.

The secretary apprised the committee that governments of UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait have voiced reservations on various issues related to overseas Pakistanis.

The Senate committee was informed that in September last year, organised gangs of Pakistani beggars were found operating in Iraq and Saudi Arabia, who travelled to these countries as pilgrims.

Most of these people visit Saudi Arabia on Umrah visas and Saudi authorities have reported that 90 per cent of all beggars arrested in the country, were Pakistanis.

A committee member, Senator Nasir Abbas, highlighted the issue of Pakistanis living illegally in Iraq to earn a livelihood and questioned if the ministry can help them as they are often subjected to poor treatment.

Senator Zeeshan Khanzada said that a number of Pakistanis were living illegally in Italy, but they identify themselves as non-Pakistanis while Pakistan embassy identifies them as Pakistani citizens. He suggested that the ministry should play a proactive role and get a clear picture and also extend possible help to stranded Pakistanis.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2024