Cabinet committee reviews pension reforms for uncovered labour force

ISLAMABAD, Oct 01 (APP): A meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Pension Reforms for the Uncovered Labour Force was held here on Thursday under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Law and Justice Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar.

Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, Chaudhry Salik Hussain, Minister of State for Finance and Revenue, Bilal Azhar Kayani, Adviser to the Prime Minister, Haroon Akhtar Khan and relevant officials attended the meeting.

The meeting reviewed various models for bringing informal and pension-excluded workers into the pension system. A voluntary pension scheme for domestic workers, agricultural workers, self-employed persons and other informal workers was also discussed.

The committee considered options for the participation of employers, employees and self-employed persons, along with digital registration, transparent record-keeping and long-term financial sustainability of the proposed scheme. The use of Eemployees Old-Age Benefit Institution’s (EoBI) digital system as a model for the proposed voluntary pension scheme was also discussed.

Speaking on the occasion, Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar said every worker should have the right to a dignified and secure retirement, and that pension protection should not remain limited to the formal sector. He said bringing domestic workers, agricultural workers, self-employed persons and other informal workers within the social protection framework was an important need.

The Federal Minister said the proposed pension system would be designed to be accessible, financially sustainable and long-term, while remaining aligned with international standards and International Labour Organization (ILO) principles.