ISLAMABAD: The government is taking concrete steps to empower youth so that they can play an active role in the development of the country, according to an official of the Ministry of Planning Development and Special Initiatives.
He told WealthPK that the government was striving to build the capacity of youth and impart skills and knowledge to them so that they would not face problems in finding employment in future.
Pakistan is the fifth country in the world with the largest population of youth as compared to Japan, the United States, South Korea and other developed countries. Around 63 percent population of Pakistan comprises youth aged between 15 and 33.
A research officer at the youth affairs section of the Ministry of Planning Development and Special Initiatives, who wished not to be named, said that empowerment of youth by developing their skills would pave the way for technological and industrial progress in the country.
“The government is planning to approve a project of setting up 250 vocational training institutes in the country on a 50 percent sharing basis with the provinces to develop skills of youth,” he said.
The official said that the institutes would be very useful for the youth of the country to impart them skill development training and build their capacity. He said that small-scale institutes to provide quality training and award a diploma to the students would cost less, compared to a university.
He said that the institutes would be established in the small towns of the country instead of big cities. He added that the existing buildings and other facilities of schools could be utilised or upgraded for launching different courses for the youth.
“The government is also going to restart the scheme of distribution of laptops among the students. The government will start another scheme to enable the students and youth to buy laptops through easy instalments,” said the official.
He said that the establishment of the National Youth Commission (NYC) for empowering the young people through their socio-economic development, the launch of an integrated job portal, fee reimbursement scheme and disbursement of loans to boost entrepreneurship were few measures taken by the government for the welfare of the young population of the country.
The official said that the government would also launch the ‘Green Youth Movement’ to encourage youth to take part in climate change mitigation efforts. “The skilled youth can improve the country’s industrial productivity, competitiveness, domestic production and exports as well as increase the inflows of overseas remittances,” he added.
He said that the strong commitment of the government would help the youth to get prepared for entering the job market with a wide range of opportunities available to them.
Punjab Industries and Commerce Secretary Dr. Ahmad Javed Qazi told WealthPK that there were more than 500 institutes in the province to impart technical education to youth. He added that the government established three technical universities in Punjab to provide skills and technical education to youth.
