Italy has opened thousands of employment opportunities for Pakistani workers, announcing a quota of more than 10,000 jobs to be offered over the next three years.
According to the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, the program will allow around 3,500 Pakistanis to work in Italy each year under both seasonal and non-seasonal employment categories.
Of this total, 1,500 workers annually will be employed on a seasonal basis, while 2,000 will secure non-seasonal positions.
With this move, Italy becomes the first European country to formally grant Pakistan access to its labor market through a structured, quota-based framework. Officials believe the initiative could pave the way for similar labor agreements with other European nations.
The announcement comes amid a sharp rise in overseas migration from Pakistan. Over the past three years, nearly 2.9 million Pakistanis have moved abroad in search of better opportunities, citing low wages, soaring inflation, unemployment and increasing education expenses at home.
Data from the Economic Survey 2024–25 shows that more than one million Pakistanis left the country for employment in a single fiscal year, highlighting the growing dependence on overseas jobs and remittance inflows.
