441-02217 (Foreign affairs)

The right of each country to assist its citizens abroad is a basic principle of international law and diplomacy. Global Affairs Canada (GAC) officials provide Canadians with consular assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through more than 260 points of service in 150 countries from various offices, including embassies, high commissions, consulates, consular agencies, as well as through the Ottawa-based Emergency Watch and Response Centre. GAC is also responsible for the Trade Commissioner Service (TCS), which helps Canadian businesses grow with confidence by connecting them with funding and support programs, international opportunities, and a network of trade commissioners in over 160 cities worldwide.

In Pakistan, Canada is represented by the High Commission of Canada to Pakistan in Islamabad, the country’s capital city, which also provides consular services and houses a TCS office. Canada is also represented by a consulate in Lahore led by an Honorary Consul, and a TCS office in Karachi. These missions employ Canadian-based GAC staff in consular, diplomatic, development, and trade roles, joined at times by staff from other federal government departments. They also employ locally engaged staff, who are responsible for a wide range of tasks, from administrative and technical support to providing valuable knowledge, language skills, and cultural expertise to help Canadian officials navigate the complexities of their own country’s environment.

Under Canada’s Official Languages Act, all Canadian missions are legally required to provide services to Canadians in the Official Language of their choice, whether French or English. Canada’s missions in Pakistan also provide services in Urdu, as it is one of the country’s two official languages, alongside English. In recognition of Pakistan’s multilingual society, in which more than a dozen languages are commonly spoken, GAC strives to hire diverse locally-engaged staff who are representative of Pakistan’s population, including those with additional language skills, so that a translator can be accessible if needed. The Government of Canada’s plan to transform GAC for the Future of Diplomacy, unveiled in June 2023, recognizes that while projecting bilingualism is a core aspect of Canada’s identity, diversity, and strength as well as an undeniable asset to Canada’s international engagement, the Department should also work to deepen and sustain critical foreign-language capacities. The plan for the Future of Diplomacy also outlines the importance of attracting, retaining, and developing top locally engaged talent as a key component of its workforce, citing language skills as an example of the valuable expertise they contribute.