The Ministry of Planning, Development, and SI has introduced new youth projects.
The implementation of the five significant youth development
initiatives proposed by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Thursday has been
stepped up by the Ministry of Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives.
After the announcement of these efforts, the minister stated
that "empowering the poor youth by substantially boosting chances for
their education, training, and employability is important for the future of
Pakistan."
The five "Young Development Initiatives" were
introduced to mark Pakistan's Independence Day's 75th anniversary. The
development of 250 mini sports complexes, the upliftment of Pakistan's 20
poorest districts, the establishment of the Pakistan Innovation Fund, and the
75 National Top Talent Scholarships Project are the five main efforts.
The importance of the programmes was emphasized by Professor
Ahsan Iqbal, who stated that the only way to transform Pakistan's youth bulge
from a liability into an advantage is by privatizing the state's investment in
young people.
To increase their skills and employability, 20,000 young
engineers will be hired in PSDP-funded projects as part of the National
Development Internships Programme. The programme includes paid on-the-job
training in a variety of professions for recent graduates.
The minister's second major effort is to improve the 20
poorest districts in Pakistan. This year, a package of Rs 40 billion has been
given to help the 20 impoverished districts of the nation, including
Balochistan and FATA.
The minister emphasized the significance of the initiative by
stating that the building of Mini Sports Complexes is another significant step
under the Youth Development Programmes that will increase the facilities for
youth sports and that Rs 1000 million has been allocated for this project in
PSDP 2022–23.
Establishing a Pakistan Innovation Fund is one of the
project's goals, along with developing a framework for the nation's effective
innovation policy and identifying the elements of effective innovative
regulatory mechanisms. Under PSDP 2022–23, an Innovation Support Project was
also launched in this regard, with a budget of Rs. 10 billion.
The 75 National Top Talent Scholarships Program, the sixth
initiative, offers Pakistani students the opportunity to earn Master's and
Ph.D. degrees from the top 50 universities worldwide. In this regard, Rs 4.7
billion has been provided for this project to support and prepare gifted
children from low-income households who want to pursue higher education but are
unable to do so due to financial constraints.
The minister was commended by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif
for his bold move and requested to develop similar initiatives across the
nation. I pledge to fund any initiatives that truly give young people more
influence, he said.
