NA- Overseas Pakistanis Committee censures Workers Welfare Fund; seeks immediate resolution of WWF devolution.
Committee Orders financial audit of Workers Welfare Fund, demands accountability over housing allotments and stronger protection of labour welfare funds

 

• The Committee directed the Government to expedite resolution of the long-pending constitutional and administrative status of the Workers Welfare Fund (WWF), sought complete documentation relating to devolution, and decided to summon the Secretary, Inter-Provincial Coordination Division, in its next meeting.
 

• The Committee also ordered a financial audit of WWF, sought details of its assets, investments, expenditure and audit history, and directed that responsibility be fixed for the controversial allotment of houses without an approved policy.
 

• Chair Syed Rafiullah observed that the prolonged delay in resolving the issue was directly affecting Pakistan's labour community, remarking that "the Ministry and WWF are not resolving this issue because it relates to the weakest segment of Pakistan i.e. its labour."
Islamabad (July 6, 2026) The Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, chaired by Syed Rafiullah, met in the Constitution Room, Parliament House, to receive a comprehensive briefing from the Workers Welfare Fund on the Fund's constitutional status, financial management, investment portfolio and welfare initiatives for industrial workers.

 

 

2. The Committee registered strong displeasure over the absence of both the Federal Minister and the Secretary of the Ministry, observing that parliamentary oversight cannot be effectively exercised when the principal executive authorities fail to appear before the Committee. The Committee undertook an extensive review of the longstanding issue concerning the constitutional and administrative status of the Workers Welfare Fund following the Eighteenth Constitutional Amendment. Officials informed the Committee that while all provinces except Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had enacted the relevant legislation, the broader question of devolution remained unresolved and was awaiting further consideration through the appropriate constitutional mechanism. Members expressed dissatisfaction over the continued uncertainty and questioned the absence of legal clarity despite years of deliberation.
 

3. Chair Syed Rafiullah observed that the prolonged delay in resolving the issue was directly affecting Pakistan's labour community, remarking that "the Ministry and WWF are not resolving this issue because it relates to the weakest segment of Pakistan i.e. its labour." The Committee consequently directed that all documents relating to devolution, deliberations before the Council of Common Interests and the proposed future course of action be furnished for examination.
 

4. The Committee also undertook a detailed examination of the Fund's financial management. Members were informed that approximately Rs.350 billion collected under the WWF head presently remains with the Finance Division. Expressing concern over the opportunity cost of idle public resources, the Committee recommended that WWF funds be placed in interest-bearing accounts, ensuring that returns generated are utilised exclusively for the welfare of industrial workers. Members also sought detailed information regarding the Fund's investment policy, expenditure, income, banking arrangements and overall financial governance.
 

5. The Committee revisited the controversial Zone-V labour housing project, questioning the circumstances under which housing allotments had been announced in the absence of a duly approved policy framework. Members stressed that public assets cannot be distributed outside established legal procedures, irrespective of administrative or political directives. The Committee directed that responsibility be fixed wherever irregularities had occurred and sought a comprehensive fact-finding report together with complete documentary details of the project. It also reviewed matters relating to land acquired for the proposed medical university in Islamabad, where officials informed the Committee that the matter had previously been examined by investigative authorities and is presently under review by a newly constituted committee.
 

6. Members further examined the implementation of labour welfare programmes, including scholarship schemes, Hajj assistance, health projects, workers' housing, educational facilities and digital services. While appreciating the introduction of the WWF online portal and mobile application, the Committee observed that many workers remain unable to benefit from these initiatives because their employers fail to register them. It directed WWF to incorporate a mechanism enabling workers to initiate their own registration where employers fail to fulfil their legal obligations. The Committee also instructed that the portal and mobile application be made fully available in Urdu, alongside English, to improve accessibility for workers across the country.
 

7. Additionally, the Committee directed the Ministry to provide comprehensive details regarding WWF assets, immovable properties settled with provinces, hybrid administrative arrangements following devolution, expenditure records, audit reports, audit observations and income generated from investments. It also ordered a comprehensive financial audit of the Workers Welfare Fund to strengthen transparency, financial discipline and parliamentary oversight.
 

8. The meeting of the Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development was attended by MNAs; Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhatti, Dr Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto, Mr. Fatehullah Khan, Mr. Muhammad Ilyas Choudhry, Ms. Sofia Saeed Shah, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Behn, Ms. Mah Jabeen Khan Abbasi, Ms. Saeeda Jamshid, Mr. Mian Khan Bugti, Mr. Farhan Chishti and Ms. Erum Hamid, along with senior officials of the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development and the Workers Welfare Fund.