Rise and demand of human capital

No doubt, skilled human resource is the most significant asset for a nation and to meet the needs of the contemporary world effective training strategy was crucial. In the era of technology and artificial intelligence, there was a need for equipping the youth with necessary up-to-date knowledge in Pakistan. The Government of Pakistan has started to set up a skilled development programme which will be helpful in the economic growth alongside pushing prosperity in the country’s regions and under the plan the government has prioritised the skill development of workers. Under the procedure of the programme testing and training centers will be set up across the country to develop the human capital. The initiative will help boost remittance inflows, especially from Saudi Arabia, home to over two million Pakistani expats, and the biggest contributor to remittance inflows in the South Asian nations.

The Government of Pakistan officials recorded that in pursuance of Goal 8 of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), i.e. decent work and economic growth, the government of Pakistan has developed a broader roadmap for youth development under the National Skill Strategy (NSS) which emphasizes on improving governance, exploring multi-source funding, capacity enhancement by employable skills, quality assurance, access and equity, industry ownership and skill development for international market for growing foreign remittances. The emphasis is also made on re-skilling the existing workers by Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and provision of subsidized loans to unemployed youth. Further, the introduction of Competency-Based Training and Assessment (CBT&A) is a significant determinant of the National Skills Strategy (NSS), which is the basis of the ongoing Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector reform in our country. It also provides the basis for the implementation of the National Vocational Qualifications Framework (NVQF).

It was recorded that the roadmap also urges on public-private partnership; growing the private sector role in the governance of TVET and encouraging linkages with the informal sector through RPL. Further, youth empowerment and productivity have been given priority in the National Youth Development Framework (NYDF).

In Pakistan according to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2020-21, the overall employment-to-population ratio is 42.1 per cent and this ratio is higher in males (64.1 per cent) as against females (19.4 per cent). The province-wise comparison also shows the same pattern. In Punjab employment to population ratio is 44.2 per cent, followed by Sindh (42.1 per cent), Balochistan (38.6 per cent) and KP (36 per cent), respectively. Being a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) agriculture sector plays a significant in the development of the economy. According to the Labour Force Survey 2020-21, the share of employment in the agriculture sector decreased from 39.2 percent in 2018-19 to 37.4 percent in 2020-21. This sector is the key source of supply of raw materials to the other sectors of the economy, mainly the industrial sector. A significant share of employment from the agriculture sector is shifted to the industry and services sector due to technological transformation. The Services sector is the largest growing sector of the economy and the share of employment in the services sector is 37.2 percent in FY2021.

The construction and manufacturing sectors are considered a major source of economic growth and development. Expansion of these sectors can generate millions of jobs for an unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled workforce. Further, these sectors also play a significant role in generating income in formal and informal sectors. The share of employment in the construction sector has increased from 8.0 per cent in FY2019 to 9.5 per cent in FY2021. This increase shows that job opportunities are being created in Pakistan. The wholesale and retail trade sector has shown 14.4 per cent employment in FY2021. The employment level in transport/storage and communication remained the same in the period under review and the share of employment in community/social and personal service sectors increased from 14.9 per cent in FY2019 to 16.0 per cent in FY2021.

Employment abroad

According to the Labour Force Survey FY2021, the overall unemployment rate is 6.3 per cent with the prevalence of a higher unemployment rate of 12.2 per cent among 20-24 years as against 11.8 per cent in FY2019. More than 11.7 million Pakistanis have proceeded abroad for employment in over 50 countries by official procedures as of December 2021. The migration of Pakistani workers is mostly concentrated in Gulf Cooperation Council countries (96 percent) with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates hosting the majority. They are contributing to the development of the economy of Pakistan by sending remittances, which is the second largest source of foreign exchange after exports. During 2021, the Bureau of Emigration & Overseas Employment (BE&OE) recorded 286,648 workers for overseas employment, showing an increase of 27.6 per cent as compared to the last year. Saudi Arabia (54 per cent), Oman (13.4 per cent) and Qatar (13.2 per cent) are the main destinations for unskilled migrant workers from Pakistan in 2021. Overall increasing trend was observed in terms of emigrants registered in 2021 as compared to 2020.

Statistics showed that the highest number of workers who went abroad were 156,877 from Punjab, followed by KPK 76,213. The situation of human resource exports is likely to improve in the coming months with the reopening of business with SOPs and various preventive measures like vaccination, work opportunities in various host countries, etc.