Islam Abad
On May 2, 2025, H.E. Mr. Akamatsu Shuichi, Ambassador Extraordinary
and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Pakistan, hosted the “Pakistan-Japan
Human Resources Stakeholders Meeting” at the Ambassador’s Residence
in Islamabad. The high-level gathering brought together approximately 70
key stakeholders actively engaged in developing and facilitating Pakistani
human resources for employment opportunities in Japan.
The event witnessed the presence of distinguished figures including H.E.
Mr. Chaudhry Salik Hussain, Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human
Resource Development, H.E. Ms. Shaza Fatima, Minister for Information
Technology and Telecommunications, H.E. Mr. Mohammad Awn Saqlain,
Minister of State for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource
Development, and representatives from leading Japanese and Pakistani
organizations. Major participants representatives from Plus W, Proud
Partners, Japan Pakistan Innovation Institute (JPII) and Japan Station. Also,
representatives from key institutions such as Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Japan External Trade Organization
(JETRO)presented.
The forum centered on the growing demands for skilled Pakistani labor in
Japan and explored strategies to build stronger linkages that enable the
smooth deployment of qualified professionals across multiple sectors,
including IT, healthcare, construction, agriculture, and manufacturing.
Ambassador Akamatsu stated in his welcome remarks as follows:
“I am confident that the success of Pakistani professionals in Japan is
becoming one of the key pillars of the bilateral relations. Both Japanese and
Pakistani Embassies remains committed to making contributions in this
area. The evaluation of Pakistani talents in Japan is becoming higher and
higher. Therefore, I expect that the demands for skilled Pakistani
professionals will be expanding in the future.
Japan seeks high-quality human resources, and by engaging with Japan,
young Pakistani talents will contribute significantly to strengthening the
Japan-Pakistan relations.
For Pakistan, remittances are one of the major economic pillars, and the
skills and knowledge Pakistani workers acquire in Japan will help to foster
industrial development after returning to their home country. Please allow
me to touch upon the Osaka-Kansai Expo, which has opened as of 13th of
April until 13th of October, half a year. I have already had the pleasure of
visiting it in the last month. More than 160 countries participate in this
Expo. Among them, Pakistan Pavilion, which is consist of pink salts, is so
popular among the visitors. I hope this Pakistan pavilion attracts many
Japanese people and arouse their interest towards Pakistan. I would also
like to encourage many Pakistani people to visit Japan on this occasion and
experience the advanced and human-friendly technologies firsthand.”
Minister Salik Hussain emphasized the need for enhanced cooperation
between Pakistan and Japan to help Pakistani professionals access
opportunities in the Japanese corporate sector. He commended the
partnership between the Overseas Employment Corporation (OEC) and
PlusW, noting that its recent expansion under the Specified Skilled Workers
(SSW) program now covers sectors beyond IT, including healthcare,
construction, agriculture, and manufacturing.
Minister Shaza Fatima, Minister for IT and Telecommunications,
highlighted the success of Pakistani IT companies at Japan IT Week in
Tokyo (April 2025), where 15 companies secured contracts exceeding
$600,000. She called for more roadshows to showcase Pakistani tech talent
in Japan and urged the development of a demand-supply matching platform
to better align Pakistan’s workforce development with Japan’s needs. She
also advocated for the inclusion of IT and telecommunication fields in
Japan’s Project for Human Resource Development Scholarship (JDS)
program.
Speakers from JICA, JETRO, Plus W (celebrating its 5th anniversary),
Pakistani university student (with fluent Japanese and English) and OEC
Pakistan also shared updates on their respective initiatives to expand
workforce collaboration and strengthen the people-to-people ties.
The meeting concluded with a reaffirmation of mutual commitment to
promoting sustainable, long-term collaboration among stakeholders of
Japan and Pakistan through human capital development and cross-border
workforce mobility.
Stakeholders Meeting”
