ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s green-lighting of a new residency scheme for expatriates is a game-changer for 2.7 million Pakistanis living in the Kingdom, business officials and experts said, and might finally give expatriates who can pay a required fee the right to live, work and own business and property in the Kingdom.
The new residency scheme, officially known as a “Privileged Iqama” and commonly referred to as the Saudi “green card,” was first mentioned by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman nearly three years ago. Those eligible will be able to choose between an annual renewable option or permanent residency, with indefinite leave to remain in exchange for a higher, one-off fee. Saudi government officials have told Arab News that the scheme now awaits cabinet approval. “This is a very positive and long-awaited step,” Sehr Kamran, President of the Center for Pakistan and Gulf Studies, told Arab News. “It will give confidence to the expatriate community, especially the investors, since many people had been losing their businesses to Kafeels (Saudi sponsors).”
Once approved, this new system will end the need for expatriates to have a local sponsor, or “kafeel.” For those who already bend the rules by constantly renewing limited visitor visas, there will no longer be “visa runs” every few months. It will also eliminate long queues at embassies.
Without a Kafeel, a foreigner cannot do business in Saudi Arabia, and a local sponsor has controlling share over businesses, often leading to disputes.
“The biggest benefit [of the new scheme] is that Pakistanis who have been living there are aware of their language, and they can invest in small and medium size businesses and employ other Pakistanis without relying on local partners,” Rizwan-ul-Haq, former Ambassador to Saudi Arabia told Arab News.
“If mid-to-large scale businesses are assured of legal rights and a conducive environment, they would definitely move to Saudi Arabia. The educational and hospitality sector can boom,” he added.
Pakistan’s bilateral trade with Saudi Arabia stood at $1.871 billion in 2017-18 with exports amounting to $170 million and imports at $1.7 billion. Since 1971, Pakistanis have contributed toward building the Kingdom’s infrastructure. They remit nearly $6 billion from Saudi Arabia every year.
In order to be eligible for the new green card scheme, expatriates must meet several criteria including having a valid passport, clean criminal record, financial solvency, and authentic credit and health reports.
Farhan Ahmed, the CEO of an Islamabad-based travel and tourism company, said Riyadh’s decision was encouraging for Pakistan’s business community.
“This is a very positive and encouraging move. It gives hope to the business community to go and invest there without concerns over the protection of their investment,” Ahmed said, adding that he would definitely consider availing the opportunity “after proper consideration.”
Over 2.7 million Pakistanis living in Saudi Arabia to benefit from new green card
Over 2.7 million Pakistanis living in Saudi Arabia to benefit from new green card
- “Privileged Iqama” scheme first mentioned by Saudi Crown Prince Salman nearly three years ago
- Once approved, new system will end the need for expatriates to have a local sponsor, or “kafeel”
Pakistan moves to digitize payments for 10 million women under flagship poverty initiative
- BISP Official says accounts will be linked to phones to boost financial inclusion and curb payment deductions
- Over 1.9 million SIMs issued as the nationwide rollout continues across provinces ahead of the March deadline
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s flagship poverty alleviation initiative, the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP), plans to equip 10 million women with digital bank accounts linked to their phone numbers within four months in one of the largest such exercises in the world, one of its top officials said on Wednesday.
Launched in 2008, the initiative is named after the late former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and has a budget of Rs716 billion ($2.5 billion) during the current fiscal year. Through its Benazir Kafaalat — or financial assistance — program, BISP provides quarterly stipends of Rs13,500 ($48) to around 10 million women.
In an exclusive interview with Arab News, BISP Secretary Amir Ali Ahmed said the opening of digital bank accounts for the beneficiaries was part of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s initiative related to a cashless economy and digital transformation of the country.
“I’m glad to share that 10 million bank accounts, wallet accounts were created,” he said. “This is a follow-up of the same exercise whereby now 10 million SIMs are being distributed.
“It is significant to share that the entire beneficiary network that we have is female-centric,” he continued. “So these are 10 million female accounts that have been created.”
Ahmed said the process of issuing mobile phone SIM cards to BISP beneficiaries had started on November 17 and would be completed by March next year.
“Let me share that this is one of the largest such exercises to be conducted in the world which is female-centric, linked with financial inclusion and financial empowerment.”
The BISP official added that out of the more than 10 million beneficiaries, only five to 10 percent had bank accounts, but nearly 90 to 95 percent were excluded from the system.
He said they were being linked to the banking system with cellphone SIMs that are being distributed with the help of the IT ministry, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, National Database and Registration Authority and telecom companies across the country.
“We feel that this initiative of the government of Pakistan will not only result in financial empowerment of our beneficiaries, it will also result in financial inclusion of a segment which was not part of the banking sector in Pakistan,” he said, adding that the move will also lead to transparency.
In the past, there have been complaints of women not getting their full payment from bank officials in the absence of their own accounts, but Ahmed said this was going to change.
“They will be free from any exploitation at the agent networks, the queues that one would witness, the complaints of corruption or deductions that would emerge,” he continued.
According to official data, more than 1.9 million SIMs have so far been issued for BISP beneficiaries across the country.
The province of Punjab leads the rollout with 810,597 SIMs, followed by Sindh with 523,629 and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 371,427 SIMs.
In other regions, Azad Jammu and Kashmir has received 59,617, Balochistan 82,826, Gilgit-Baltistan 45,184, and Islamabad 4,508 SIMs.
