EU Plans To Spend 50 Mln Euros On Training Programs In Pakistan

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 17th Sep, 2021 ) :European Union has planned to spend up to 50 million Euros in Pakistan for vocational education and training programs across Pakistan in various cities and sectors; starting from January 2022.

This was informed by Eurpean Union's Head of Cooperation, Ovidiu Mic, who headed EU delegation during visit to Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry here, said FPCCI release on Thursday.

Ovidiu Mic apprised the audience that agriculture, textiles, SMEs and ICT would get more programs as these sectors could potentially create millions of jobs in Pakistan. EU was keen to help the unskilled workforce of Pakistan attain new skills and become productive employees for Pakistani businesses and beyond.

He expressed his satisfaction over the successful completion of more than three years of Sectoral Support Program (SSP) under Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) initiatives in collaboration with FPCCI. These programs were being implemented by National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTCC) Pakistan and GIZ (Germany), and also supported by Norwegian Government.

President FPCCI Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo said that he was proud of FPCCI and NAVTCC for playing an instrumental role in TVET-SSP and efficiently facilitating the training programs to educate and train the youth of Pakistan.

Maggo said that he wanted to see TVET-SSP to expand to additional sectors and other cities of Pakistan to benefit more SMEs and Women Entrepreneurs across Pakistan. TVET-SSP should also continue beyond 2021 and reach out to 90 million smart phone users of Pakistan to maximize the gains it could offer, he said.

Coordinator FPCCI Head Office, Sultan Rehman, in his message, said reactivation of FPCCI-GIZ Joint Secretariat highlighted FPCCI's performance in 2021.

Salman Haroon, Convener FPCCI's Central Standing Committee on TVET, handed over books � based on TVET-SSP training programs � to the dignitaries.

Top leadership of the organizations and companies benefiting and participating in TVET-SSP programs of EU also attended the meeting and shared their experiences with the programs. And, how those skill development programs had helped them acquire the required skilled human resources for their organizations.