ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has emphasized the need for guiding and facilitating youth of the country, particularly from Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, to benefit from the Prime Minister’s Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (YES).
In order to empower the youth financially, he said that Prime Minister’s Kamyab Jawan Programme offered tremendous economic opportunities and the youth were required to capitalise on them by availing loans to establish their businesses.
The president made these remarks, while chairing a meeting to help address the issues being faced by the youth of AJK and G-B in getting loans.
The meeting held at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Wednesday was attended by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Youth Affairs, Muhammad Usman Dar, President Bank of Punjab Zafar Masud, Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi, Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan, Khalid Khursheed Khan, President Alfalah Bank, Atif Bajwa, President JS Bank, Basir Shamsie, President National Bank of Pakistan, Arif Usmani, and Head Consumer, Habib Bank Limited, Aamir Kureshi.
SAPM on Youth Affairs Dar briefed the meeting about the loans disbursed under YES.
The meeting was apprised that Rs 19.1 billion had been disbursed among the youth, out of approved loan of 26.2 billion, to establish their businesses.
It was further informed that that YES had created more than 30,000 jobs in various sectors.
The SAPM on Youth Affairs gave details of the disbursed amount by various banks, including Bank of Punjab, JS Bank Limited, National Bank of Pakistan, Bank Alfalah Limited and Habib Bank Limited that had disbursed loans among youth worth Rs 4.8 billion, Rs 3.5 billion, Rs 2.4 billion, Rs 1.7 billion, and Rs 1.6 billion respectively.
The prime minister of AJK and chief minister G-B highlighted the issues being faced by the youth in availing loans under the Prime Minister’s Youth Entrepreneur Scheme.
The meeting discussed various measures to educate and guide the youth to benefit from the loans scheme.
The president advised the governments of AJK and G-B to establish facilitation centres in their respective areas to help facilitate the youth in getting loans.
He also emphasised the need to create awareness among the youth by engaging media and local political leaders.
The president also asked the heads of the five banks to establish facilitation desks to guide the youth in getting loans.
The meeting agreed to hold monthly meetings to review progress with regard to the disbursement of loans in the AJK and G-B.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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