Pakistan and EU discuss legal migration and skilled labor

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner met in Islamabad to discuss migration and mobility cooperation. The discussions centered on the Pakistan-EU Strategic Engagement Plan of 2019, specifically focusing on strengthening cooperation within the migration and mobility pillar.

Prime Minister Sharif emphasized Pakistan’s commitment to curbing irregular migration and combating human trafficking through legislative reforms and enhanced enforcement. He advocated for the expansion of legal migration routes for skilled Pakistani professionals to meet European labor market demands, arguing that such pathways reduce the reliance on smuggling networks.

Commissioner Brunner acknowledged Pakistan’s progress in addressing irregular migration and expressed confidence that existing efforts could facilitate expanded legal migration opportunities and mutually beneficial labor mobility between the two regions.