Since 1972, more than 14.22 million Pakistanis have proceeded abroad for employment over 50 countries through official procedures till March, 2025.
More than 96 percent Pakistani registered workers for overseas employment to the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, especially in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
They are contributing to the development of Pakistan’s economy by sending remittances, which are the major source of foreign exchange after exports.
During 2024, the Bureau of Emigration and the Overseas Employment (BE&OE) and the Overseas Employment Corporation (OEC) registered 727,381 workers for overseas employment.
According to BE&OE, more than 62 percent (452,562) of Pakistani workers moved to Saudi Arabia for employment, followed by Oman (11 percent), to earn a living.
UAE employed 64,130 Pakistani workers (9 percent) while Qatar offered jobs to 40,818 individuals (6 percent). Bahrain and Malaysia hosted 25,198 workers (3 percent) and 5,790 workers (1 percent), respectively.
The skill composition of Pakistani emigrants in 2024 continues to be dominated by unskilled and semi-skilled labor, with relatively low representation from highly qualified and highly skilled professionals. According to the data, 50 percent of emigrants fall under the unskilled category (366,092), while 35 percent (255,706) are skilled workers. Although there has been a slight decline compared to 2023, unskilled labor remains in high demand globally, particularly in
Saudi Arabia62%U.A.E. 9%Oman 11%Qatar 6%Bahrain 3%Malaysia 1%Others 8%Fig-12.4: Number of Pakistani Workers registered for overseas employment 2024, Pakistan Economic Survey 2024-25, construction, domestic work, and agriculture sectors.
To meet the evolving needs of international job markets, up skilling and certification of the workforce is Pakistan’s critical priority. In this regard, institutions like NAVTTC, TEVTAs, and other vocational training bodies have a vital role to play in producing a skilled, competitive, and internationally employable workforce.
Province-wise Emigration In 2024, the highest number of workers who went abroad for employment was from Punjab (404,345), followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (187,103), Sindh (60,424), and Tribal areas (29,937) as shown in Fig. 12.6. The graph highlights that the majority of overseas workers originate from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan have significantly lower numbers.
High costs of migration, inadequate infrastructure, and cultural barriers are likely the main factors behind the low participation in overseas migration from these provinces.
Measures to Boost Manpower To further bolster manpower export and ensure safe and orderly emigration, BE&OE aims to strengthen emigration framework and digitize the entire emigration process for improved service delivery through various initiatives.
Pakistan Emigrant Management Framework (PEMF) is a digital initiative designed to connect all relevant stakeholders and streamline the emigration process by enabling online verification of NOCs and certificates issued to prospective emigrants.
The ministry issued 65 new licenses to Overseas Employment Promoters (OEPs), bringing the total number of operational license holders to 2,264. BE&OE conducts comprehensive awareness campaigns using various media channels such as print, electronic, social media, radio, websites, Facebook, Twitter, and mobile cellular services.
BE&OE, in collaboration with FIA, formed an operational-level committee to strengthen coordination and verify emigrants’ credentials, aiming to eliminate illegal migration.
OEC is actively working to connect demand-side stakeholders (foreign employers, embassies, governments) with supply-side partners (provincial authorities, TEVTs, training institutes) to align workforce skills with international labor market needs. CWAs are key facilitators in this process.
During the HRALS Expo in Saudi Arabia (Oct 2024), OEC signed 33 Letters of Intent (LoIs) and an MoU with Nesma & Partners, boosting job prospects under Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.