Islamabad
The Government of Pakistan is introducing historic reforms to safeguard the rights of overseas Pakistanis and improve governance and digitization across relevant institutions.
This was stated by Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, Chaudhry Salik Hussain, while talking to the media at the Pakistan Governance Forum-2026 in Islamabad today.
Highlighting the importance of governance and transparency, he said government policies should be linked with an expiry date, giving confidence to the business people about the durability of the policies. He said it will help ensure continuity and enable long-term planning by investors and the business community. He added that if a businessman wants to invest, he should know that the same policy will remain in place for the next five or ten years.
Regarding his recent interactions with foreign governments, Chaudhry Salik Hussain said successful negotiations have been held with the Spanish government to grant legal status to around 20,000 Pakistanis residing in Spain, who will now be provided residence permits. He said facilitating overseas employment enables young people to earn dignified livelihoods while contributing valuable foreign exchange to Pakistan.
The Minister further said that remittances have witnessed a historic increase in recent months.
Talking about the outcomes of his visits to the Middle East, He said the government is considering imparting soft skills to young Pakistanis going abroad so that they are fully aware of foreign laws and professional requirements.
He said learning these soft skills will be made compulsory for the new workforce.
Chaudhry Salik Hussain further said special measures have been taken to resolve 12 to 13-year-old pending cases in the Employees’ Old-Age Benefits Institution, which will bring billions of rupees in benefit to the institution. Reforms are also underway in the Workers Welfare Fund to provide greater facilities to laborers.
The Minister said strict action has been taken against the illegal agents’ mafia, and mechanisms for complaint redressal at the Bureau of Emigration have been strengthened. He added that all relevant systems, including Protectorate Offices, will be fully digitized this year.
Responding to a question, he said passports of individuals involved in begging and other illegal activities abroad will be blocked for five to ten years.
About addressing issues of overseas Pakistanis, Chaudhry Salik said ninety percent of cases faced by overseas Pakistanis relate to property matters. He said special courts have been established in Islamabad to address these issues. He said decisions will be made within 90 days, online hearings will be available, and cases can be pursued without traveling to Pakistan.
