World Youth Skills Day: CM vows to impart modern tech, professional skills to youth

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif reaffirmed her government’s commitment to equipping the province’s youth with modern technology and professional skills, urging young people to pursue freelancing, information technology and technical trades.

“Only a technologically skilled and professionally trained youth could play a pivotal role in the country’s progress and prosperity,” she said adding: “Young people were the nation’s greatest asset and the architects of its future.” The CM said the Punjab government had allocated substantial funds to promote skill development among the youth.

Under the theme “Skills for a shared future,” the day was observed highlighting the urgent need for innovative youth skills programmes. In 2014, the United Nations General Assembly declared 15 July as World Youth Skills Day, to highlight the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.

It may be noted that the Punjab Chief Minister has already accorded in-principle to the plan aimed at establishing the province’s first ‘Skills City’ and sought detailed proposals for the purpose from the newly established Skills Development & Entrepreneurship Depart-ment. The project of Skills City will feature technical educational institutes aligned with industry requirements, while skills education institutions will be upgraded into Centres of Excellence.

As per vision of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, young person in Punjab will be highly skilled and proficient in their fields. She stated that all available resources will be utilized to provide youth with market-driven technical education, enabling them to become the true strength of Punjab.

In her message on World Youth Skills Day, The CM noted that more than 108,000 people had received loans under the Asaan Karobar and Asaan Finance schemes. Under the Asaan Karobar Scheme, interest-free loans ranging from Rs1 million to Rs 3 million are being provided to young entrepreneurs.

She said that under the Agriculture Internship Programme, 2,000 young people were receiving a monthly stipend of Rs 60,000.

She said vocational training institutes across Punjab were offering internationally aligned courses in technology, construction, masonry, welding, tile fixing and heavy vehicle maintenance. She added that 10,000 young people from across the province had been facilitated with employment opportunities in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries in line with international market requirements.

The CM said that, for the first time in Punjab, e-commerce, digital marketing and advanced IT courses had been incorporated into the curriculum.

Highlighting women’s empowerment through skills development, she said the Sehar Programme was providing 5,365 women across the province with training in beautification, hospitality and airline management. Participants are also being provided free laptops and a monthly stipend of Rs7,500, she added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026