PM orders full digitisation of overseas remittances

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed that remittances sent from abroad be shifted entirely to digital channels, as the government pushes ahead with its broader cashless economy agenda.

The directive was issued at a meeting in Islamabad chaired by the prime minister on promoting a cashless economy and digital payments. According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), he also ordered that public outreach efforts aimed at encouraging traders to use QR code-based payment systems be made more effective.

In the statement, the PMO said the prime minister linked the move towards a cashless economy with durable economic expansion and greater transparency. It added that he praised the economic team for progress made over the past year in moving Pakistan towards a digital payments-based system.

The PMO also said the prime minister lauded the economic team for recording a 300 per cent increase over the past year in the number of transactions. During the meeting, he directed that remittances from overseas Pakistanis be digitised completely as part of the government’s effort to expand the use of digital payments across the economy.