Islamabad: In a meeting convened by the Senate Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, chaired by Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro, the committee demanded answers over a decade-long delay in the reconstitution of the Employees’ Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) Board. The committee also reviewed the institution’s investment portfolio and expressed dissatisfaction over governance issues and a shift in focus away from worker welfare.

According to the Senate of Pakistan, the committee was briefed on EOBI’s investment portfolio, valued at 691 billion rupees. Of this, 592 billion rupees (85%) are invested in Treasury Bills and State Banks, yielding a 13.5% return. However, the committee raised concerns about 59 billion rupees (8.5%) that remain stagnant in real estate projects. Members questioned the legal authority of the Board, which has not been reconstituted since 2016, and criticized the lack of transparency as meeting minutes are not published on the official website.

The committee also noted that no actuarial summary has been submitted for a decade, describing this as incompetence. Concerns were raised over investments deemed “mala fide” and recurring losses in various portfolios. The chairman directed that a summary on the progress be submitted within 15 days and requested a detailed report on ongoing legal cases and the professional backgrounds of Board members.

Additionally, the Director General of Immigration briefed the committee on a notable decline in the number of overseas workers, especially in Saudi Arabia, citing limited flight availability as a contributing factor. The committee was informed that 5,400 out of 6,000 grievances have been resolved, and the chairman directed that service brochures and outcomes of recent foreign meetings be shared in the next session.

The meeting was chaired by Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro, with participation from Senators Shahadat Awan, Syed Kazim Ali Shah, Saeed Ahmed Hashmi, Atta-ul-Haq, and senior officials from the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development.