Pakistan says will resume exporting skilled workers to Kuwait after lifting of 19-year visa ban

This photo taken on November 3, 2018, shows a man holdong a Pakistani passport in Bangkok, Thailand. (AFP/File)
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Updated 04 August 2025
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Pakistan says will resume exporting skilled workers to Kuwait after lifting of 19-year visa ban

  • Kuwait lifted visa ban in May, allowing the resumption of work, family, business and tourist visas
  • Remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis are crucial for cash-strapped country for economical revival 

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (OP&HRD) will resume exporting skilled workers to Kuwait, state-run media reported on Monday, after the Gulf country lifted a 19-year visa ban on Islamabad earlier this year. 

In May, Kuwait officially lifted its long-standing visa ban on Pakistani nationals, allowing the resumption of work, family, business and tourist visas. Kuwait had stopped issuing visas to citizens of Pakistan, Iran, Syria and Afghanistan, citing difficult security conditions in the countries.

Thousands of Pakistanis every year travel abroad for jobs in Gulf countries, Europe, the United States and other nations. The remittances sent by Pakistani citizens employed abroad is crucial for the South Asian country to shore up its foreign reserves, especially as it grapples with a prolonged economic crisis. 

“Overseas Employment Corporation, an attached department of the Ministry of OP&HRD, would export skilled workers to the State of Kuwait after a long time,” the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported. “Pakistan has been sending its skilled workers to Kuwait.”

The state media said there were vacancies for the post of a warehouse supervisor, whose maximum age can be 35, and has diploma or a bachelor’s degree and must be fluent in English, in Kuwait. APP said applicants should possess strong customer service skills and have experience working in retail warehouses or logistics companies.

Jobs for the posts of warehouse coordinator, warehouseman, carpenter, and unskilled workers, assistant furniture and drivers were also available, the state-run media said. It said the deadline for the submission of documents by applicants is Aug. 15, 2025.

Pakistan, which enjoys cordial relations with Kuwait and cooperation in several sectors, established diplomatic relations with the Gulf country in October 1963.


Pakistan says two astronaut candidates pass China screening for space mission

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Pakistan says two astronaut candidates pass China screening for space mission

  • Candidates complete medical and psychological assessments at China’s astronaut center
  • Final selection for Chinese space station flight will take place after six-month training

ISLAMABAD: Two Pakistani astronaut candidates have successfully completed advanced medical, psychological and aptitude assessments in China for a human spaceflight mission, an official statement said on Saturday, bringing the country closer to sending on of them aboard a Chinese space station later this year.

The bilateral arrangement follows the signing of the Astronaut Cooperation Agreement between the two countries in February last year, which aimed to enable Pakistan’s participation in space-based activities.

The Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) had selected potential candidates who underwent advanced assessments at the Astronauts Center of China (ACC) and will now proceed to the next phase of training.

“The shortlisted candidates will undertake advanced astronaut training for six months at ACC,” the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement.

“Upon completion of training, one candidate will be selected for a spaceflight mission aboard the Chinese Space Station (CSS) in October / November 2026,” it added.

The program is part of Pakistan’s broader push to enter human spaceflight through cooperation with China, as Beijing expands international participation in its Tiangong space station amid growing competition in space exploration.

China has increasingly opened its space station to international collaboration.

Pakistan and China have also worked together in the past on satellite launches and lunar exploration projects.

The ISPR described the initiative as a “landmark” step reflecting strong Chinese support, saying Beijing had “selected Pakistan as the first foreign partner in its astronaut program.”