‘Youth empowerment govt’s top priority’

Islamabad: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Youth Affairs Usman Dar has said creating more jobs and promoting entrepreneurship culture for youth empowerment is the top priority of incumbent government.

Addressing the preparatory meeting of Generation Unlimited Strategic Advisory Council (GenU-SAC) here at the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC) headquarters on Thursday, Usman Dar said the ‘Hunarmand Pakistan’ programme, a component of Kamyab Jawan programme, has been launched to equip our young people with necessary skills and training and enable them to thrive in the world of work.

He said that Strategic Advisory Council (SAC) will provide strategic guidance for strengthening our TVET system and promoting public private partnership to identify and scale solutions, unlock investments and empower young people to play a positive role in the society.

Usman Dar asked the members of the Council to develop a clear road map by the next meeting after mapping the areas of collaboration, which will help in identifying the gaps and addressing them.

NAVTTC Chairman Syed Javed Hasan, said that partnership with GenU will be helpful in mobilizing the youth by equipping them with necessary skills and making them engaged members of the society.

Dr. Nasir Khan, the Executive Director of NAVTTC, said that SAC will offer a platform for knowledge and technology exchange and help align national policies, programmes with international TVET models. Representatives of UN, UNICEF, UNDP, Higher Education Commission (HEC), Agha Khan Foundation (AKF) and private sector were present in the meeting.

The Terms of Reference (ToRs) of GenU-SAC were discussed in detail during the meeting. Generation Unlimited (GenU) is a global partnership launched at the United Nations that empowers young people to become productive and engage citizens by connecting secondary-age education and training to employment and entrepreneurship. The Strategic Advisory Council (SAC) will provide strategic guidance for the establishment of a Generation Unlimited (GenU) partnership, approaches, and investment agenda in Pakistan.