Officials informed the National Assembly\u2019s Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis that the number of Pakistanis travelling abroad has increased, with a five percent rise recorded in 2025 as compared to last year.<\/p>\n
The committee met under the chairmanship of Aga Rafiullah and reviewed issues related to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), overseas travel rules, passenger facilities at airports, and the performance of community welfare attach\u00e9s in Gulf countries.<\/p>\n
During the meeting, Chairman Aga Rafiullah recalled that the FIA had been directed to clearly inform passengers at airports about where they could lodge complaints. FIA officials told the committee that departure-related rules had been prepared and were awaiting approval. They said the rules were pending before the relevant committee, while a standard operating procedure had also been finalized. According to officials, facilitation desks have been set up at airports to provide guidance and counselling to passengers before departure.<\/p>\n
Aga Rafiullah, however, said he had not seen any such desk during a recent airport visit and directed that clear instructions in Urdu be displayed at every airport counter, informing passengers where to file complaints if they are offloaded.<\/p>\n
The meeting also saw a detailed discussion on the performance of welfare attach\u00e9s posted in Gulf countries. Aga Rafiullah said the committee wanted results, not just information, and stressed that overseas Pakistanis should not be left complaining that welfare attach\u00e9s are unresponsive.<\/p>\n
Committee member Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto raised concerns over staffing and accountability, citing an example from Riyadh where two welfare attach\u00e9s, a husband and wife, were reportedly on leave at the same time. She also pointed out that one attach\u00e9 had continued in his post eight months after completing his tenure. She said large sums were being spent on welfare attach\u00e9s who were not delivering the expected services, alleging that many were appointed through favoritism.<\/p>\n
Responding to the criticism, the Secretary for Overseas Pakistanis said welfare attach\u00e9s are selected on merit after passing tests and are not appointed through recommendations. He added that existing attach\u00e9s continue to serve until replacements arrive. Aga Rafiullah said that if appointments are made on merit, performance must also be ensured.<\/p>\n
Officials further informed the committee that India has 26 welfare attach\u00e9s posted in the Saudi cities of Jeddah and Riyadh, compared to Pakistan\u2019s six. Aga Rafiullah suggested that the prime minister and cabinet should be approached for additional postings. Officials said a summary for 11 welfare attach\u00e9 positions in Saudi Arabia has already been sent.<\/p>\n
The committee was told that welfare attach\u00e9s are available online and operate under terms of reference approved by the Prime Minister\u2019s Office, with 60 percent of their role focused on securing employment opportunities and 40 percent on welfare matters.<\/p>\n
Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto questioned how many jobs welfare attach\u00e9s had actually secured. Aga Rafiullah added that instead of highlighting development projects in countries like Qatar, officials should report how many Pakistanis had been recruited there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Officials informed the National Assembly\u2019s Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis that the number of Pakistanis travelling abroad has increased, with a five percent rise recorded in 2025 as compared to last year. The committee met under the chairmanship of Aga Rafiullah and reviewed issues related to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), overseas travel rules, passenger […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":70599,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,16],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[213],"class_list":{"0":"post-70598","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-latest","8":"category-pakistan"},"yoast_head":"\n