Overseas Pakistani Commission (OPC), Punjab, is a special institution with Services and General Administration Department of Government of the Punjab. In a recent conversation with BR Research, Captain (Rtd.) Shaheen Khalid Butt, Vice Chairman OPC, emphasises on efforts being made to resolve the expatriates' issues. Following is the edited piece from the meeting.
BR Research: Tell us Overseas Pakistanis Commission's journey so far? What are its key objectives?
Shaheen Khalid Butt: The Overseas Pakistanis Commission (OPC) was enacted by law in November 2014 with Chief Minister Punjab, Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif as its chairman. Overseas Pakistanis have been facing immense problems, and previous governments have not been able to take some concrete steps to assuage this. These problems are related to different walks of life, and issues like family or property disputes, settling down issues, employment hindrances, law and order concerns etc, have long been a dilemma for the overseas residents.
However, I would like to appreciate the present government's initiatives in areas where we were handicapped; Chief Minister Punjab has strategised a plan where an office of Punjab Overseas Pakistanis Commission has been legislated through the Punjab Assembly. This office is fully empowered by law to look after the welfare of Overseas Pakistanis. Its key objectives revolve around redressing complaints and facilitating the citizens. Welfare of overseas Pakistanis, bringing them in the mainstream, facilitating them in investments, protecting them from land grabbing are just to name a few activities OPC is involved in. It's important that we take this initial step for a population that is contributing around $16 billion in the form of remittances. OPC aims in helping non-resident Pakistanis overcome the challenges confronting them.
BRR: Speaking of remittances, what is the potential in your view?
SKB: I see tremendous potential, and this is one area for expatriates where some work has been done over the years. The growth has undoubtedly been impressive where the Pakistan Remittance Initiative (PRI) has helped a lot. Time has proven that home remittances have grown exponentially, but there is still a huge room for improvement as some money is still not part of the system.
BRR: What is the biggest issue faced by overseas Pakistanis?
SKB: Apart from the grievances, investment is a big area for us. A significant chunk of the overseas Pakistanis belongs to the upper middle class, and the key problem they face is the lack of security for their investments. Because of tedious procedures and red tapism, the investment sentiments have gone sour for overseas Pakistanis. This serves as the single most terrible reason for shooing away the investment from overseas Pakistanis; they do not want to waste time and energy in dealing with irrelevant hurdles put in their way, and prefer to invest their dollars in some lucrative and conducive country or just save them in the bank.
The overseas Pakistanis face various issues and our job is to take care of them. And the issues range from general to domestic including property, judiciary, police etc. In a nutshell, it is not only our job to revive their confidence in visiting Pakistan, which is a fundamental in enticing investment in the country, but also to rectify their existing investments in property and elsewhere to send out a positive message to the other and the rest of the world. On the whole, we are working with Punjab Board of Investment & Trade (PBIT) to expedite and bring in investment from overseas Pakistanis.
BRR: What is Punjab Overseas Pakistani Commission doing to rectify existing issues like investments?
SKB: First and foremost it is reviving the confidence of overseas Pakistanis. We have received 622 complaints in the last two months, and we have been able to resolve around 37 to 40 percent of them. Out of these 40 percent, five percent are the complaints that might not have been resolved directly by us, but the concerned party has been guided adequately. Also, we make sure that we are not soliciting a client; we leave that liberty with the client. Our task is to provide one-window operation to our clients in helping them address their issues.
BRR: What kind of investment response do you get from areas other than Middle East, especially the West?
SKB: It needs to be understood that the overseas Pakistanis in the western countries have very different dynamics. Unlike Middle East where people have been living for 20-30 years as employees who look forward to visiting the country, the Pakistanis in the western countries like North America and Canada have permanent residence in those countries; they are more disconnected than the former due to the distance.
So, the kind of investment they are interested in is also different. For example, overseas Pakistanis in the western countries are more interested in a fund where they could place their savings. Their preference is a defined avenue with known return, and real estate investment does not come in that. They have lesser grievances, but do hope for a security of their investment. We think that the best way to cater them is by providing them with new investment products and instruments through the execution of securitization of home remittances like that proposed by PRI. For this we have to work hand in hand with PBIT to develop products, advertise them, and facilitate investors.