Pakistan’s Cabinet Division has announced the implementation of a new foreign travel policy for federal ministers and government officials, in accordance with decisions made by the federal cabinet. This policy aims to streamline and regulate overseas visits while emphasizing austerity measures and accountability.
Key highlights of the policy include seeking permission from the austerity committee for visits without unavoidable reasons, while all the details of the foreign visits would have to be provided to the Foreign Ministry.
According to the documents, there is a ban on simultaneous foreign visits of ministers and secretaries, except for unavoidable circumstances where both may travel together, subject to permission from the prime minister.
For any exemption, the minister, or division concerned would have to seek permission from the prime minister.
Efforts to involve embassy officers have been encouraged for any conferences abroad, while government officers have been restricted to travelling abroad only for unavoidable reasons. If there is no unavoidable reason, permission for any travel would have to be sought from the austerity committee. Moreover, staying in five-star hotels during foreign visits is prohibited, and support staff accompanying government officers on journeys are disallowed.
