Harmful Hiring

According to news reports, the cabinet has extended licenses for 86 foreign pilots. This highlights the inefficiency of our overstaffed government entities, which rely on foreign professionals despite paying them exorbitant salaries. In Pakistan, foreigners are called in for irrigation repairs, road construction, and other tasks that government engineers should handle.

While developed countries also hire foreigners, they do so after exhausting local manpower. In contrast, our institutions are overstaffed, often with 50–80% more personnel than needed, yet lack productivity. Millions of young people enter an already oversaturated job market every year, but overstaffing in government departments and poor economic growth prevent new job creation.



Why, then, do we continue to hire foreign professionals unnecessarily? The government must prioritise improving education, recruitment processes, and ensuring meritocracy. Without such reforms, Pakistan will remain trapped in economic crises, with the majority of its population mired in poverty. As a first step, the government should halt the unnecessary hiring of foreigners for tasks that Pakistani professionals can perform perfectly well under a merit-based system.

Customs foils attempt to manipulate FCAS GULSHER PANHWER, Johi. Tags: harmful hiring.