Pakistan Targets 400,000 Workers for World Cup 2034 Jobs

Pakistan is planning to train and place up to 400,000 workers in overseas roles connected to the FIFA World Cup 2034, marking a major push to turn global sporting infrastructure demand into employment and remittance gains. The initiative is being shaped as part of Islamabad’s broader manpower export strategy for the years leading up to the tournament.

According to official documents cited in the report, the government is aligning workforce preparation with expected demand across construction, aviation, tourism, hospitality and supporting service industries. The planning window extends from 2026 to 2034, giving Pakistani institutions time to prepare workers for specialised roles before major projects reach peak activity.

The target range places the expected deployment between 300,000 and 400,000 trained workers. Officials view the opportunity as a way to improve Pakistan’s labour profile abroad, where competition is rising and employers increasingly prefer workers with verified skills, language ability, digital records and workplace adaptability.

The documents state that skills development is already under way. During July to March of fiscal year 2025-26, more than 215,000 workers received soft-skills training designed to improve productivity, communication, adjustment to foreign workplaces and overall employability in international labour markets.

Overseas employment remains one of Pakistan’s most important economic lifelines. In 2025, the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment registered 762,499 workers for foreign jobs, while more than 15 million Pakistanis have gone abroad for work through official channels since 1972.

The Gulf remains the centre of Pakistan’s manpower export model. More than 96 percent of workers leaving through formal routes are employed in Gulf Cooperation Council countries, with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates continuing to dominate demand because of construction, services, logistics and large-scale development projects.

Saudi Arabia alone received 530,256 Pakistani workers in 2025, representing nearly 70 percent of the country’s total overseas employment registrations for that year. Riyadh’s Vision 2030 programme is expected to keep demand high for trained manpower as the kingdom expands transport, tourism, entertainment and infrastructure linked to its long-term economic transformation.

Pakistan is also trying to diversify beyond traditional Gulf destinations. Under the Pakistan-EU Migration and Mobility Dialogue, Islamabad has been engaging European partners on legal labour migration, while Italy has announced a three-year quota of 10,500 seasonal and non-seasonal workers for Pakistan. Germany and Greece are also moving toward structured cooperation on skilled labour pathways.

The government is pairing these labour plans with digital reforms in the emigration system. The Pakistan Emigrant Management Framework is being developed to link multiple stakeholders through online verification, while the Digital HR Pool system has been introduced to support biometric checks, job matching and more transparent recruitment.

For Pakistan, the impact could be significant if the programme is executed properly. A larger pool of certified workers can raise remittance inflows, reduce pressure on the domestic job market and help families access better incomes, but success will depend on training quality, fair recruitment, protection from exploitation and the ability to match Pakistani workers with real overseas demand before 2034.