Cabinet approves Rs100b youth loan programme
The federal cabinet approved "Kamyab Jawan Programme" for extending loans of up to rupees five million to youth.
The programme aims at enabling youth to start their own businesses, lessen unemployment and give a boost to the economic growth, said Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan.
Briefing the media on cabinet decisions, she said the cabinet pondered over the rupee depreciation and its impact on people, and held a thorough discussion on education policy and the new youth loan programme.
The Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) said that Prime Minister Imran Khan, who chaired the cabinet meeting, has reiterated his resolve to overcome the economic difficulties of the people. She said the cabinet was informed that Prime Minister's Adviser on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh is busy drawing up a long term economic plan which he would unveil on Saturday (May 25).
Giving details of the youth loan scheme, Firdous said youth aged between 18 and 35 years were 65 percent of the population and in order to empower them the cabinet had decided to launch "Kamyab Jawan (Successful Youth) Programme".
The programme would engage young people in economic and trade activities and create job opportunities, she said. Women, who are 52 percent of the population, would also be made beneficiary of the programme and 25 percent of the loans would be given to them, she explained.
Dr Awan said the loans would be provided in two categories. In the first category banks will provide loan of up to 500,000 rupees at six percent mark-up with lending equity of 10 percent of the amount applied for. Under the second category, an applicant can get loan of up to five million rupees at a mark-up of eight percent and equity ratio of 20 percent, she added.
The programme would bring an economic revolution as youth would be self employed and not only bear their own burden, but would help reduce inflation and unemployment, she observed. She said SAPM on Youth Affairs Usman Dar would brief the media about the salient features of the programme in coming days.
The SAPM said
that Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mehmood gave a comprehensive briefing to the cabinet on new education policy and his ministry's plan to increase literacy rate and provide vocational training and skills to students.
She said the policy would be developed under the mandate of the federal government and necessary assistance and facilitation would be provided to provinces for its implementation. A regulatory mechanism had been planned to supplement the efforts of provinces in education sector, she added.
Firdous said the minister will brief media about the contours of the education policy which focuses on provision of quality education, uniform curriculum and other reforms. Spread of education would help in tackling challenges facing the country, she remarked. She said Prime Minister tasked Higher Education Commission to bring maximum number of chapters of foreign universities with high international standards to Pakistan.
The prime minister also directed that scholarship opportunities should be made available for students in universities abroad as were availed by students of India and other countries.