In order to steer Pakistan from ongoing deep economic crisis, it is needed that job creation should he given top most priority and in fact the whole economy should revolve around this basic purpose.
This was said by Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman Altaf Shakoor here Sunday. He said that Pakistan is amongst the countries with a huge youth bulge but majority of these young people are jobless. He said despite getting 14, 16 and 18 years of education these young people don’t find a proper job, because our economy is not based on employability.
He said that the hands of our policymakers are tied due to strict conditions of our foreign loans and they are forced not to align the national economy to create ample job opportunities for young people. He said this wrong policy is generating less family incomes and more poverty and deprivation.
Altaf Shakoor said our fertile lands, wonderful river system and favourable weather condition are ideal for creating millions of new jobs in agriculture and farming-related sector, but the government is not serious to tap these resources. He said construction of dams has already made a taboo in Pakistan, land reforms are overdue and use of modern cultivation and cropping technologies are not being introduced in the country.
He said value addition to agriculture sector products is criminally neglected in Pakistan and primitive methods of farming and processing of agriculture products have made our economy stagnant. He said till the government and private sector focus on our rural economy we cannot ensure better employability in our society.
Altaf Shakoor said that like the agricultural sector, the industrial sector of Pakistan is also in shambles. He said the government is not focusing on availablity of cheap fuel and energy but rather making gas, electricity and fossil fuels more costly. He said this raises production costs and make Pakistani goods uncompetitive in international markets. He said without cheap and uninterrupted energy our industry cannot survive. He said closing of more and more industrial units due to costly energy and senseless high taxation are further fueling joblessness in Pakistan.
Altaf Shakoor demanded to revamp educational system in Pakistan and revolve it around the concept of employability. He said 16 and 18 years of education is of no use when these graduates do not find job opportunities in market. He said the government should concentrate on technical and vocational training. He said every district of the country must have at least one technical university.
