Thousands of Pakistanis got jobs in UAE in 3 years, ministry informs Senate

More than 1.1 million Pakistanis got jobs overseas in the first three years of the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) government, the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis informed Senate on Friday.

In a written reply during the question hour in the Senate, the ministry said as many as 6,24000 people got jobs in Saudi Arabia, while 2,92000 people left for the UAE for employment during the first three years of the incumbent government.

Over 6,000 Pakistani got jobs in Iraq, more than 2,000 in China and the United Kingdom, while more than 1,000 Pakistanis got employment in the United States. As many as 288 Pakistan left for Turkey for employment, the reply submitted by the Overseas Ministry read.

Last year, Prime Minister Imran Khan had launched “Sohni Dharti Remittance Programme” for overseas Pakistanis aimed at encouraging the use of formal channels for remittances.

Addressing the launching ceremony, the prime minister had emphasised on incentivising overseas Pakistanis and providing them VIP treatment for their remittances.

Imran had said that the programme was launched to reward overseas Pakistanis points against the remittances they send through the legal channels.

The inflows under “Roshan Digital Account” (RDA) rose to $3.16 billion by the end of December 2021 compared to $2.916 billion till end of November last year, according to a latest data released by the State Bank of Pakistan.

The data shows that the inflows during the month of December were recorded at $244 million compared to $239 million in November and $266 million in October this year.

Roshan Digital Account was launched by State Bank of Pakistan, in collaboration with commercial banks operating in Pakistan.

These accounts provide innovative banking solutions for millions of Non Resident Pakistanis (NRPs), including Non-Resident Pakistan Origin Card holders, seeking to undertake banking, payment and investment activities in Pakistan.

As per data, expatriate Pakistanis from 175 countries had deposited the funds to 322,463 accounts opened through RDA.

The number of accounts has also been increased from 299,676 in November 2021 to 322,463 in December, which means some 22,787 new accounts were opened in December last.

The scheme that started in September 2020 received lukewarm response from the overseas Pakistanis who deposited only $7 million in the opening month, however with the passage of time the interest kept on increasing as the inflow reached to $40 million in October 2020 and $110 million in the subsequent month.

NNI News Service