Ahmad Shafiq's Vision: When Pakistani Skills Travel the World
For Ahmad Shafiq, hospitality education is not only about earning a qualification. It is about creating economic opportunities through skills.
Since establishing COTHM in 2002, his central focus has been to develop professionals capable of competing in Pakistan’s hospitality, tourism, culinary, travel and aviation sectors both domestically and internationally.
The economic potential of this vision becomes particularly significant when skilled Pakistani professionals enter international employment.
Skills as an Export
At a COTHM convocation, Ahmad Shafiq emphasized that the export potential of qualified and skilled Pakistani youth can play an important role in strengthening the national economy through foreign remittances.
This concept places professional education within a much larger economic framework.
When a Pakistani chef works in Dubai, a hotel manager works in Saudi Arabia, a hospitality professional works in Europe, or a tourism specialist builds a career in another international market, the value of that professional’s skills extends beyond the individual.
Their international employment can contribute to Pakistan through the foreign exchange and remittance flows generated by overseas workers.
Building a Skilled Workforce for Global Demand
COTHM has deliberately developed programs in fields where international hospitality and tourism industries require trained personnel.
Its programs cover areas including:
- Hospitality Management
- Culinary Arts
- Baking & Patisserie
- Travel & Tourism
- Airline Management
- Food Safety
- Professional hospitality skills
COTHM’s international partnerships and career pathways are designed to connect graduates with opportunities in hotels, airlines, cruise lines, tourism organizations and international hospitality businesses.
From Brain Drain to Skills Export
Ahmad Shafiq’s approach presents an alternative way of looking at overseas employment.
Rather than viewing skilled migration only as a loss of human capital, professionally trained workers can become ambassadors of Pakistani skills, while their earnings abroad can support families and contribute to foreign exchange inflows.
This makes skills development an important component of Pakistan’s broader economic strategy.
With more than 100,000 alumni associated with COTHM’s growing global community, the institution’s educational impact has moved far beyond the classroom.
Ahmad Shafiq’s journey therefore represents a larger proposition: Pakistan can export skills, professionalism and talent — not merely commodities.
And hospitality, tourism and culinary industries offer some of the world’s most internationally mobile career opportunities.
