Pakistani workers look for alternative ways to reach Gulf countries

Gulf Today Report

As most of the flights from Pakistan to the Gulf countries are suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pakistanis are exploring  alternative routes so that they could rejoin their duties there.

Several Gulf countries have imposed strict travel restrictions to stop spread of the virus that has claimed at least 3,704,003 lives across the world. 

Surprisingly, Kabul  has become an unlikely pandemic transit route for Pakistanis desperate to reach Saudi Arabia despite deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan.

Thousands of Pakistani workers are hoping to reach the kingdom after spending two weeks in Kabul.

The photo has been used for illustrative purposes.

“I'm a little bit worried,” said Sohaib Siddiqui, a 31-year-old electrical engineer from Lahore, in line at the Afghanistan embassy in Islamabad.

But he added that he was “willing to take risks,” explaining that a job in Saudi Arabia would allow him to send between Rs50,000 and Rs100,000 a month to his family of three.

The Gulf countries have long been a vital avenue of employment for Pakistanis, who send back billions of dollars in remittances every year, propping up the cash-strapped economy.

In the past month alone, tens of thousands of Pakistanis have applied for transit visas at the Afghan embassy in Islamabad, according to an official at the mission.

Hundreds have camped overnight to submit their paperwork.

The plan is not foolproof, however, with the one direct flight between Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia cancelled in recent days, according to a travel agent in Kabul.

The photo has been used for illustrative purposes.

Special flights were available only to workers who already had Saudi residency — at a cost of around $1,300.

The influx of travellers into Kabul comes as US troops are pulling out of the country following nearly 20 years of war, with violence surging.

“We have no choice, what should we do?” said Tanweer Ahmad while waiting in line in Islamabad to file his application for an Afghan visa.

At a diagnostic centre in Kabul, doctors have been mobbed with Pakistanis desperate for the COVID-19 tests needed to enter Saudi Arabia, doubling demand at the lab in recent weeks.

“Saudis and the Pakistanis trust Afghan laboratories,” beamed Sediqqullah Safi, a doctor at the testing centre, saying he hoped the new batch of visitors would inject much-needed money into the capital's slumping economy.

“They come here with benefits — they're spending money on shopping, transportation, and of course on coronavirus tests.”

For Anwar Khan — who spent two weeks in the capital and is hoping to fly to Saudi Arabia soon — the unnerving trip has been worth it.

“One would of course worry about security,” said Khan. “Thank God there has been no problem [for] us so far.”

 “I have small kids at home and no other source of income,” said Liaquat Ali. “We are taking a big risk going to Afghanistan. There are no guarantees.”