ISLAMABAD: Official data reveals that over 400,000 talented young Pakistanis going abroad in a desperate quest for job opportunities abroad during the initial half of this year.
The persistent phenomenon of young individuals seeking employment abroad, known as the ‘brain drain,’ has been ongoing for several years. Recent data indicates that an astonishing 2.75 million youth have left the country in the past five years.
Experts attribute this brain drain to uncertain economic conditions, rising inflation, and high unemployment rates. They emphasize that this trend is not limited to any specific region of the country.
According to an official document, more than 1.2 million young people have sought employment overseas during the current coalition government’s tenure.
Based on the data provided, during the first six months of this year, a significant number of individuals from Pakistan sought employment abroad, with 832,000 people going overseas and over 400,000 leaving the country. These individuals were highly educated and trained, representing various sectors.
The breakdown of the data indicates that within the past year and a half, 11,000 accountants, 11,000 engineers, 4,000 doctors, 34,000 technicians, and 37,500 managers left the country. Additionally, there were 4,000 nurses, 1,560 teachers, 29,000 electricians, 13,445 computer typists, 8,000 agricultural experts, 15,000 computer operators, and over 1,600 draftsmen among those who departed.
The majority of Pakistani youth seeking better employment opportunities went to Arab countries, with 700,000 going to Saudi Arabia, 229,000 to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), 111,000 to Oman, and 90,000 to Qatar. Outside of the Middle East, the statistics show that 8,000 Pakistanis went to Great Britain, over 1,300 to the United States, over 20,000 to Malaysia, 3,000 to Greece, and over 6,000 to Romania.
Furthermore, the official data indicates that in previous years, 382,000 individuals went abroad in 2018, 625,000 in 2019, 225,000 in 2020, and 288,000 in 2021. Among those who left Pakistan, more than 200,000 were highly educated, and over 400,000 were highly trained individuals.
