Over 1.87 million Pakistanis went abroad for work in last three years, NA told

More than 1.87 million Pakistanis moved abroad for employment over the past three years, including doctors, engineers, IT specialists, teachers and other professionals, according to official documents presented in the National Assembly.

The figures show that thousands of highly educated and skilled workers have also left the country during this period, raising questions about the movement of professionals across various sectors.

According to the documents, 45,830 highly educated Pakistanis went abroad in 2024, followed by 28,726 in 2025 and another 15,850 in 2026 so far.

Among engineers, 8,015 went abroad for employment in 2024, while 5,945 left in 2025 and 3,605 in 2026 so far.

The number of doctors who moved abroad stood at 3,625 in 2024 and 3,795 in 2025, while 2,093 went overseas in the current year.

The documents also recorded the departure of 1,729 teachers in 2024, 1,725 in 2025 and 1,457 in 2026 so far.

Nurses were among those seeking overseas employment, with 2,030 leaving in 2024, 1,639 in 2025 and 626 in 2026 so far.

The figures further showed that 1,351 computer programmers went abroad in 2024, followed by 1,147 in 2025 and 664 in 2026. The number of system analysts stood at 388 in 2024, 362 in 2025 and 243 in 2026 so far.

Managers also accounted for a significant number of overseas workers. A total of 23,674 managers went abroad in 2024, while 9,562 did so in 2025 and 5,190 in 2026 so far.

The official data also included figures for pharmacists, dental surgeons and accountants, among other professional categories.