PM Imran directs appointment of 'facilitating officers' for overseas Pakistanis

In order to further streamline services to overseas Pakistanis, Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed the appointment of 'facilitating officers' in 39 federal divisions.

This initiative is aimed at addressing problems faced by overseas Pakistanis in different offices. In a statement, the PM's Office (PMO) said that the ministries have been directed to notify the appointment of facilitating officers.

These officers will not be below the rank of Grade-19, the PMO quoted the PM as saying.

The PM has also directed the establishment of special sections and desks in 34 sub-departments of 13 ministries for facilitation of overseas Pakistanis.

Khan has also ordered that federal departments share the information regarding this initiative with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for dissemination to Pakistani diaspora.

"All the divisions should furnish the report in 21 days regarding the accomplishment of the assigned task," the PM directed.

'National Remittance Loyalty Program' being launched to encourage overseas Pakistanis

Overseas Pakistanis have been a key priority for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, which has taken a number of measures in order to attract foreign currency for the cash-strapped economy, which remains dependent on remittance inflows.

It has also launched Roshan Digital Account (RDA), an initiative of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for Non-Resident Pakistanis (NRP), formed in collaboration with commercial banks operating in Pakistan.

Last week, the SBP said that the cumulative inflow under the RDA reached $2.411 billion in the thirteen months since its inception.

The government is also set to launch the 'National Remittance Loyalty Program' (NRLP), aimed at offering monetary and other benefits to lure overseas Pakistanis to use official channels. The NRLP will offer incentives/rewards for sending remittances to Pakistan based on the point's accumulation structure.

The move is aimed at increasing Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves that have remained under pressure due to debt repayment, and a high import bill.