Gulf Countries Shift Employment Preferences Away from Pakistani Workforce

Gulf countries are increasingly recruiting workers from nations like Bangladesh over Pakistan due to concerns about crime rates and workforce quality. A Senate committee highlights the declining trend in overseas employment for Pakistanis, impactful socio-economic ramifications, and the government's neglect of potential within this sector.

Gulf countries are increasingly opting to hire from nations like Bangladesh over Pakistan due to alarmingly low standards among the Pakistani workforce and a rising crime rate attributed to Pakistani laborers, a report revealed on Wednesday.

Senator Zeeshan Khanzada, chair of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis, criticized the government for neglecting the potential in this sector during a Tuesday meeting. Pakistani diaspora numbers 10.7 million, primarily working in Saudi Arabia, UAE, US, UK, and Canada.

Secretary of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Dr. Arshad Mahmood painted a bleak picture of Pakistani labor in the Gulf, noting a 50% crime rate among UAE laborers linked to Pakistanis and highlighting the inadequacies in skill development and modernization within the Pakistani workforce.