Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered the complete digitisation of the Protectorate of Emigrants system as part of a broader effort to expand employment opportunities for Pakistani workers abroad. The directive came while the prime minister chaired a review meeting focused on productive employment for youth, during which he also instructed Pakistani embassies abroad to accelerate efforts to identify and publicise overseas job opportunities for the country’s workforce.
The prime minister instructed the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis, the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission, and the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme to ensure that skills training, language courses, and internationally recognised certifications are made available to the workforce, particularly young people preparing to work overseas. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan’s workforce remains highly capable and that the government is taking every possible step to provide internationally competitive education while expanding global employment opportunities for citizens. He further directed relevant institutions to deepen engagement with different countries in order to align Pakistani certifications with international standards, along with establishing what officials referred to as Country of Destination Centres to prepare workers for specific overseas labour markets.
During the meeting, participants were briefed on ongoing efforts to create employment opportunities for Pakistanis, with officials noting that around 800,000 young people have already registered on the Digital Youth Hub, a platform developed jointly by the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme and UNICEF. The Digital Youth Hub functions as a central platform offering young Pakistanis access to scholarships, job resources, entrepreneurial support, and skill development opportunities, and is expected to serve as a key channel through which Pakistani embassies and missions abroad will share information on available jobs and required qualifications going forward. Officials said employment opportunities identified for the workforce span sectors including construction, agriculture, tourism, health, transport, biotechnology, manufacturing, shipbuilding, information technology, engineering, nursing, pharmaceuticals, and food processing.
The push to expand overseas job placement and digitise related government systems comes as unemployment in Pakistan rose to 7.1 percent, its highest level in 21 years, despite economic growth of 3.7 percent recorded during the outgoing fiscal year that ended in June, according to Pakistan’s Economic Survey 2025-26. The number of unemployed people rose from 4.5 million to 5.9 million during the fiscal year, indicating that the current pace of economic growth has not been sufficient to generate adequate employment for the country’s population of more than 240 million people. The digitisation of the Protectorate of Emigrants system is expected to streamline the documentation and clearance process for Pakistanis seeking work abroad, reducing reliance on manual paperwork and improving transparency for overseas job seekers navigating the country’s emigration procedures.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
