ISLAMABAD, Oct 2 (APP): A 2-day first ever international conference, commencing from Monday, will help enhance vocational skills of Pakistani youth and will be a step forward to learn from the best practices of the developed world for laying a strong basis for producing skilled manpower in the country.
The conference is being organized by NAVTTC and will be participated by experts and professional in various trades from 14 countries including Germany, UK, China, Turkey, South Korea, Sri Lanka.
It would provide an opportunity to their Pakistani counterparts to learn from their experience of bolstering industrial production in their respective countries by investing in human capital, said the Executive Director of National Vocational and Technical Training Commission(NAVTTC) Zulfiqar Ahmad Cheema while talking to APP on Sunday about details of the international moot.
The aim of the conference was to equip the youth with standard technical skills so that they could be employed at any institution of the national and international level.
Maintaining quality technical education was pivotal in the courses being taught at the vocational institutes, Cheema said adding “ the interaction of our experts with international experts in the vocational training, would help them hone their skills.”
“When our youth will be employed at international industries, they will remit money back to their country” and play their role in the progress of the country, he said while thanking all the countries which have confirmed their participation in the conference.
He said equipping youth with technical & vocational skills “is a gateway toward the socio-economic development of any country”. Pakistan with over sixty per cent of its population being young, has a great potential to be one of the fast developing countries among the comity of the nations, he added.
The developed countries are fully aware of the importance of technical skills, therefore they keep it on their top priority and by imparting technical education to their youth, they are leading the world, he said.
He said the skilled youth was pivotal for the industrial production and without their participation, no country could achieve development.
“We did not pay attention to the skill development sector for last 50 years as a result we are unable to utilize our youth at national as well as at international level” said Zulfiqar Cheema who is determined to turn round the NAVTTC as he has the record of achieving an enviable performance wherever he served in the public sector.
If the youth potential could be utilized by imparting quality technical and vocational training, Pakistan will be among top ten developed countries of the world, he said.
NAVTTC was making all out efforts to equip youth with modern technical skills by formulating new policies and up-gradation of curricula to meet the international standards, he said.
He said South Asian countries were facing similar problems which can be resolved through their cooperation and by adopting a global approach which would benefit the entire region.
He said the level of technical skills was high in the developed counties hence Pakistan would to learn from their expertise.
Zulfiqar Cheema said that NAVTTC has established a Job Placement Centre in which the data of all trained youth was available, adding that it was also linked with the national industries so that they can hire professionals any time.
The foreign professionals in the conference will share their experiences and knowledge with Pakistani youth, heads of the vocational institutes, professionals and other concerned institutions, as all heads of the technical institutes have been invited to attend the conference and give their valuable input, he said.
He said NACTC was helping the youth to learn market oriented skills which would enable them start their own businesses which was necessary as the government has its limitations in providing jobs to the young people.
He urged the parents to send their children in the vocational schools for getting technical education, and assured them that their children would be earning more money than a doctor or an engineer.
