---
title: 'WB President Warns Pakistan Must Create 30m Jobs in Next Decade to Avoid Instability'
url: 'https://thediplomaticinsight.com/wb-president-warns-pakistan-must-create-30m-jobs/'
author: 'Monitoring Desk'
date: '2026-02-05T16:01:32+05:00'
categories:
  - 'Economy'
---

# WB President Warns Pakistan Must Create 30m Jobs in Next Decade to Avoid Instability

**Islamabad (TDI):** Pakistan will need to create as many as 30 million jobs over the next ten years if it hopes to turn its expanding youth population into an economic advantage, World Bank President Ajay Banga has warned, cautioning that failure could lead to rising instability and increased migration abroad.

In an interview with Reuters during a visit to Karachi this week, Banga said Pakistan is approaching a critical phase as it begins implementing a 10-year Country Partnership Framework (CPF) agreed with the World Bank, alongside ongoing efforts to stabilise the economy under an IMF program. Despite these initiatives, the country remains under pressure to deliver consistent growth and employment.

“The focus has to shift from projects to outcomes,” Banga said. “And job creation is the central goal.” According to Banga, Pakistan must generate between 2.5 million and 3 million jobs annually to absorb the growing number of young people entering the workforce, a total of roughly 25 to 30 million jobs over the next decade. Without this, he warned, the country could face higher levels of illegal migration and domestic unrest.

He described employment generation as a fundamental constraint on Pakistan’s long-term growth rather than a secondary policy concern. “This is not a short-term issue, it’s a generational challenge,” he said.

Under the CPF, the World Bank Group plans to commit around $4 billion annually through a mix of public and private financing, with nearly half expected to come from private-sector investments led by the International Finance Corporation. Banga noted that this approach reflects Pakistan’s limited fiscal space and the reality that the private sector accounts for around 90 percent of job creation.

**Read More: [World Bank Approves $700m to Support Pakistan’s Economic Stability](https://thediplomaticinsight.com/world-bank-700m-support-pakistans-economic/)**

Banga outlined three core elements of Pakistan’s employment strategy: investing in human capital and infrastructure, reforming regulations to make it easier to do business, and expanding access to finance and insurance, particularly for small businesses and farmers who are often excluded from formal banking.

He identified infrastructure, primary healthcare, tourism and small-scale agriculture as sectors with strong job-creation potential. Agriculture alone, he said, could provide nearly a third of the jobs Pakistan will need by 2050.

Pakistan’s growing freelance workforce also points to strong entrepreneurial potential, but Banga stressed that these individuals need better access to capital, reliable infrastructure and institutional support to grow into businesses that can employ others.

Meanwhile, the pressure on the job market is already evident in rising outward migration. Nearly 4,000 doctors left Pakistan in 2025, the highest annual number on record, according to Gallup Pakistan data based on figures from the Bureau of Emigration, highlighting how limited opportunities and poor working conditions are driving skilled professionals overseas.

**Read More: [World Bank Approves $400m Project to Boost Water, Sanitation in Punjab](https://thediplomaticinsight.com/world-bank-400m-boost-water-sanitation-punjab/)**

Banga said reforming Pakistan’s power sector is the most urgent short-term priority, as inefficiencies and losses in electricity distribution continue to constrain growth despite improvements in generation capacity.

He noted that chronic issues such as poor bill recovery, delayed subsidies and mounting circular debt have repeatedly strained public finances and discouraged private investment. Progress on privatisation and greater private-sector participation in electricity distribution, he said, will be essential to restoring financial stability and efficiency.