Rs. 5.9bn Youth Impact Challenge Project Aims To Overcome Rising Unemployment

Senior Minister for Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs Muhammad Atif Khan said that the amount has been increased for the youth development and Youth Impact Challenge Program to Rs. 5.9 billion in order to equip and enable them to stand on their feet

PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st Jun, 2019 ):Senior Minister for Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs Muhammad Atif Khan said that the amount has been increased for the youth development and Youth Impact Challenge Program to Rs. 5.9 billion in order to equip and enable them to stand on their feet.

Talking to media men during cheques distribution ceremony, he said, KP Youth Impact Challenge Program is one such initiative in which the govt is providing financial support to the youth to run their own businesses which at one hand help us in overcome ever rising unemployment and on the other equip the youth to earn through a respectable means.

He said Youth Impact Challenge Project was launched in way back 2017 with LUMS at total amount of Rs. 500 million but now it has increased to 2 billion after so many successful stories come in and more than 311 youth have own established businesses. He said a total of 4465 youth, both male and female, had applied and they went through a very transparent process under LUMS qualified observers and technical business experts and among them 311 youth were selected for 188 different businesses through a very simple way.

Surprisingly out of these 311 youth, 100 were of female entrepreneur. He said after success of the KP Impact Challenge Project, the same was initiated for the youth of merged tribal districts and Rs. 2 billion has been allocated for the 10-year Youth Impact Challenge Program while Ts. 2 billion has been kept for the second phase of the program in KP.

He said, we want to bring the tribal youth as par with the youth of other developed areas. The tribal youth, he said, had been suffered a lot due to insurgency and militancy and most of the youth were confined to their home, other were traumatized but now the govt has launched this program to bring that youth to the main stream even in education by providing them due opportunities.

He said the youth have to make a new trend to work towards business. There is a good saying of Nelson Mandela who says, "the youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow" for this purpose special focus has been given to youth and women youth empowerment, Muhammad Atif Khan added.

He said the best way to predict the future is to create it and that is why the govt showed its commitment toward the youth empowerment under Youth Impact Challenge Program.

The KP Impact Challenge Program was also a step towards making the backward youth of their area independent, according to their thinking and heritage, and this enterprise program is an individual program of its nature.

It is a great deal for young people in these remote and backward areas that they will be able to make their business prosperous and develop their area by compatible with modern needs, Mr. Atif said. He said, it was delighted to know the details of the program that total 402 youths completed training under this Enterprise Program from different areas of KP.

He said LUMS is working with 9 different Universities of the province including University of Swat, Hazara University, University of Haripur, KUST, Kohat, Gomal University, University of Malakand, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, University of Science and Technology Bannu, Women's University Mardan and hopefully more youth would come up from these institutions in future.

He said opportunities have been given to special persons and a total of 50 persons have been trained for 13 different businesses. They have been given an amount of Rs 20.8 million to 13 businesses, he added. He said under this program the youth were trained in basic accounting, marketing, record-capping and business management scores, and three-day designing techniques were also organized, after which the young man identified a problem and understand the concept of solution better.

Under this program, many young children and girls are not only employing their business but also providing employment to other youth. This Enterprise Program is an extremely useful program through which we keep the young people in their less developed or backward areas to do something or they have a job skill or content, but lack of resources and training. They cannot do anything they can stand on their feet, he said, adding, students of this program "Wondering new ideas" can really cause perfection among the youth."He said it should be started throughout the country after many successful stories in KP so that the youth who do not get anything due to the lack of resources and training will bring them honorable jobs under Youth Impact Challenge Program. The Minister said that Federal Govt has also launched Rs. 100 billion "Kamyab Nujawan" program and hopefully the youth of KP would also get benefit from it as well. Earlier, the Minister distributed cheques among the youth, followed by a grand musical program, stunning firework and dinner. Director Youth Shamin Jan, Director General Sports Asfandiyar Khan Khattak and people from different walk of life were also present.