- Minister points out low standard of education
- NAVTTC head says 70 million young people need to be equipped with technical skills
- German envoy asks Pakistan to equip youth with technical skills to get benefits of CPEC
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mahmood on Monday said that provision of equity in the education system is another challenge which will be overcome by creating single education system through single curriculum so that people can compete on the same level of education.
“We have different streams of education due to which the maximum number of positions are taken by the students studying in private educational institutions,” he said while addressing launching of the National Skills Forum, organised here by the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC) with the support of TVET Sector Support Programme.
He shared details regarding challenges being faced in education sector, saying that the out of schools children was one of them. He said that the government was committed to enroll the maximum number of these children. He said that the government profoundly realised the challenges being faced by the country and committed to address them on priority.
The minister said that the last but not the least challenge was the provision of quality education to the students. “We have a number of educated youth but they have low standard of education. We have to provide quality of technical and vocational training to our youth in different demand driven sectors so that they could be able to get jobs across the globe,” he said.
Emphasising the need of girls’ education in the country, he said that the government would educate the women on priority as they play key role in establishing the society. In his opening remarks, NAVTTC Director General Zulfiqar Ahmad Cheema said that Pakistan has around 70 million youth which needs to be equipped with technical skills.
“This youth not only a heavy burden on the country’s economy but also a threat to the security and peace,” he said, adding that TVET Sector Support Programme is the only gateway to the peace and prosperity. Speaking on the occasion, German Ambassador Marten Kobler said that Pakistan should utilise benefits of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) by equipping the youth with technical skills.
He underlined the need to encourage the women in the business chamber of commerce. He revealed that Pakistan would have 400 million inhabitants by 2050 which is a big challenge for the country, adding it can be resolved through the provision of the technical skills. European Union Ambassador Jean-François Cautain said Pakistan needs skilled labour force on the urgent basis to fulfill the needs of the CPEC.
He reiterated full support of the European Union in the provision of technical skills to the youth. Norwegian ambassador and Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries Chairman Ghazanfar Bilour also underlined the need for technical skills and reiterated their full support in this regard.