Pakistan TVET REFORM Support Programme Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Reform support Programme
KHAIRPUR, February 25, 2014: Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah inaugurated on Sunday a two-day Khairpur Youth Festival held here in Colonel Shah Hostel Ground.
The festival was organized by the Sindh Technical Education & Vocational Training Authority (STEVTA) and District Administration Khairpur in collaboration with the TVET Reform Support Programme, which is co-funded by the European Union, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Federal Republic of Germany and being implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
During the ceremony Qaim Ali Shah underlined the importance of following the golden principles of scouting to alleviate worries and hardships of the people. He said inner satisfaction could be achieved through serving humanity.
The youth festival included a Technical Exhibition, Youth Conference, Sports Competitions, Meena Bazar and Scout Rally. Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister lauded the role and efforts of the Sindh TEVTA in promoting technical & vocational education in Sindh to meet new requirements of the development world. He emphasized upon the need of providing opportunities for applying skills gained by the trainees and also suggested the STEVTA management to create linkage with the micro finance and loaning agencies so that trainees could be facilitated for starting their own businesses.
Expressing his satisfaction on the working of STEVTA he appreciated the hard work done by them in organizing the youth festival. Other MNA’s and MPA’s also expressed their views and recognized that this youth festival was the biggest event of youth in Khairpur.
Dr. Nafisa Shah, MNA Khairpur, also participated in the festival. She visited the stalls and commended projects displayed by the trainees from various institutions. She also inquired from the trainees about their training in the institutions and necessary intervention they would like to suggest to improve the quality of the training. Majority of the trainees requested for provision of training material and equipment with hands on training in the industry for practical experience.
During her speech Dr. Nafisa Shah appreciated the effort of the STEVTA team and stressed upon the need for similar technical exhibition/program in every region and district of Sindh. She said that partnership with the industry and good working relationship between industry and institutions was the only solution to provide relevant skills and hands on experience in the industry which was crucial for gaining decent employment.
She suggested inviting maximum number of employers to witness such exhibitions and the good work done by the trainees. “This will increase the credibility of the institutions among employers,” she said appreciating the efforts of female trainees and emphasized upon creating training facilities for the socio economic development and empowerment of women.
In the end, she also distributed shields among trainees, organizers, institutions and individuals in recognition of their contribution and hard work. She also acknowledged the GIZ for its efforts in making the festival success and requested for organizing a mega event in Karachi including Job Fair for providing employment opportunities to the trainees. The STVETA Managing Director and other speakers also expressed their views on the occasion.
