KARACHI: The Sindh and federal governments on Friday reached an agreement to improve coordination on protecting workers’ rights and to accelerate labourwelfare reforms, including the planned handing over of the Employees’ OldAge Benefits Institution (EOBI) and the Workers’ Welfare Fund (WWF) to provincial control.

The EOBI was set up back in 1976 as the nation’s first socialsecurity scheme for privatesector employees, providing pensions and survivor benefits, while the Workers’ Welfare Fund was created to finance housing, health and education projects for labourers.

Over the decades, both bodies have operated under the federal government, but the 18th Amendment to the Constitution gave provinces the right to take charge of such socialservice functions.

However, the handing over of the two institutions has faced an inordinate delay mainly due to a lack of consensus among federal and provincial governments on how to split the funds, the regulatory framework and the oversight mechanisms.

CM Murad says move will bring significant benefits to workers

The other reason is stated to be legal and constitutional uncertainties as existing laws governing EOBI and WWF would need to be amended or replaced.

A press statement issued by the Chief Minister’s House said that Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah held a meeting with Federal Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Minister Chaudhry Salik Hussain to discuss matters related to overseas Pakistanis, labour welfare, and human resource development.

The meeting, held at the CM House, was attended among others by Sindh Labour Minister Saeed Ghani, Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah and Federal Overseas Pakistanis Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry.

The meeting held detailed discussions on the devolution of the EOBI and WWF to the provinces.

The chief minister said that transferring EOBI and WWF to the provinces would bring significant benefits to workers and ensure improved service delivery.

Published in Dawn, January 17th, 2026