Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday inaugurated Pakistan’s largest skills development programme titled ‘Hunarmand Jawan’
“Hunermand Jawan Pakistan programme will take us on the path to where Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah wanted us to be,” the prime minister said during his speech at the launch ceremony in Islamabad
“I need you all to understand that there is no such thing as ‘happily ever after’, that only exists in fairy tales. In real life, there are ups and downs and smart people make sure that they use the time when they are in difficulty to propel themselves towards success later,” the prime minister said, while explaining the basis on which the programme was created.
The Hunarmand Jawan programme will be carried out in the next four years at a cost of Rs30 billion and will facilitate youth through easy loans, professional capacity-building, start-ups and internships.
Chairing a pre-launch meeting of the programme, the prime minister had termed youth an asset of nation and said the programme would help the youth of the country to get better job opportunities and contribute towards national development.
In the first phase, around 170,000 youth will be given professional skill-based training, of which 50,000 will be trained in areas of artificial intelligence, robotics, cloud computing and other advanced areas of technology.
Similarly, 50,000 youth will be given training at Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority in conventional areas including auto-mechanics, plumbing etc., whereas 20,000 youth will be given apprenticeship.
Around 75 smart class rooms will be set up to ensure easy access to skill and professional education besides provision of such training at 70 Madaris. Five Centres of Excellence will also be established under the programme in collaboration with friendly countries.