By Our Correspondent
LAHORE: The federal government is keen to facilitate overseas Pakistanis and Pakistani youth in Gulf countries, mainly by providing a technological solution that enables them to send remittances to their families with ease through a domestic payment scheme, PayPak.
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This was stated by Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan, Chairman Prime Minister Youth Programme (PMYP), a representative of the government, in a meeting held with stakeholders recently in Karachi, including Ibrahim Amin, Chairman of PAFLA, and Najeeb Agrawalla, CEO of 1LINK—a financial service-providing entity.
The federal government is working extensively to serve Pakistanis in the country and overseas by addressing their core issues through all innovative, technological, and affordable means. In this regard, the government is keen to explore strategic collaboration on empowering overseas Pakistani youth through digital remittance services and expanding PayPak’s reach under the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme, he said.
A significant number of overseas Pakistanis comprise youth and they are assets of the country because of their commendable role in contributing to the economy of the country, hence, the PM Digital Youth Hub is exploring various options to honor their services for the nation with dedicated facilities and offerings, Chairman PMYP said.
Commenting on the occasion, CEO – 1LINK Najeeb Agrawalla said, ” We aim to take initiatives to facilitate secure and structured remittance flows from non-resident Pakistani workers, especially those based in Saudi Arabia, UAE and other Gulf countries, while also promoting the use of PayPak for Hajj, Umrah, and other cross-border transactions including 1BILL service for non-resident Pakistanis.”
As a major payment service provider, 1LINK proposed extending its technological expertise and platform capabilities to support the development and implementation of both initiatives, he said.
PAFLA Chairman Ibrahim Amin highlighted that over 4 million Pakistanis reside in Gulf countries and strive to contribute honestly to the national economy through their hard-earned income. Unfortunately, many of them lack access to reliable and user-friendly technological payment solutions.
PAFLA, in collaboration with Pakistani diplomatic missions, Pakistan’s banks, and different agencies, will do its best efforts to approach freelancers, blue- and white-collar Pakistani workers through outreach and engagement efforts across Gulf countries, he added.
Pakistan received over $38.3 billion in remittances from different countries in the financial year 2024-25. Overseas Pakistanis residing in different Gulf countries contribute a major share to the remittance values.
