The Pakistan Overseas Employment Promoters Association (POEPA) has rejected the claim about 1.2 million professionals who have gone abroad for employment in 18 months, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Tuesday.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan claimed that 1.2 million professionals from Pakistan had gone abroad for employment in 18 months.
Reacting to the PTI chairman’s statement, POEPA expert Adnan Paracha termed it negative propaganda.
“For the last 40 years, professionals are being sent abroad. In two years of Covid-19, the whole world was closed. In 2020 and 2021, very few people were able to get jobs abroad due to the travel ban,” he said.
“In the year 2022, as many as 835,000 people from Pakistan went abroad for employment. In six months of the year 2023, at least 390,000 people have left Pakistan for jobs abroad,” he maintained.
“In the last 18 months, 900,000 people of labour and semi-scale have gone abroad for employment out of whom 300,000 have gone in the drivers’ category,” he stated.
“In the last 18 months, only 70,000 to 75,000 doctors, engineers, and paramedical staff have left Pakistan for jobs abroad. Only 70,000 to 75,000 professionals have left Pakistan in 18 months,” he maintained.
Reporter: Ashraf Khan