Pakistan, Oman discuss entry of Pakistanis into Omani workforce market

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani and Omani officials on Wednesday discussed ways to enhance the presence of workers from Pakistan in the Gulf state’s manpower market, Arab News reported.

Islamabad’s envoy to Muscat, Ahsan Wagan, and the prime minister’s former aide on overseas Pakistanis Syed Zulfikar Bukhari, met with Omani Labor Minister Mahad bin Said bin Ali Ba’owain.

The Pakistani embassy said in a tweet they discussed “way and means to enhance export of manpower from Pakistan.”

Bukhari told Arab News that Pakistan expects Oman would “make us part of their 2040 mission and to increase manpower especially in their port area.”

Under its 2040 vision, Oman is transiting from an oil-based economy toward a more diverse knowledge-based one.

Pakistan has been deepening its ties with the Gulf state recently.

Earlier this month, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairman Redha Al-Saleh headed a business delegation that arrived in Pakistan to enhance bilateral trade and investment cooperation.

The delegation met Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, as well as officials from the Pakistani Ministry of Commerce and Investment, the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) and the chambers of commerce and industry in the cities of Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore.

During the visit, Qureshi “encouraged Oman to benefit from skilled manpower potential across diverse sectors,” the foreign office said in a statement.

“The Foreign Minister invited Omani businesses and the Pakistani diaspora to enter into investment projects and joint ventures in various fields.”

Qureshi also encouraged the Oman side to work with Pakistan to harness the full potential of the regional “economic corridor” that would connect the Gulf state to landlocked Central Asia and Afghanistan.

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