Donors conference held to promote skills development
Staff Reporter Skardu
Welcoming multiple initiatives of TVET SSP and international donors for producing skilled manpower in the region, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Assembly Speaker Syed Amjad Zaidi has said that the region can grab substantial benefits of CPEC projects by providing a skilled workforce that can bring economic and social development of the local people.
He expressed these views while addressing a donors conference organized by Directorate of Technical Education and Skills Development (DTESD), GB, in collaboration with TVET Sector Support Programme (TVET SSP) here on Monday.
The purpose of the event was to ensure sustainability as well as promotion of TVET programmes in the region through enhanced collaboration of donors.
Education Minister GB Raja Azam Khan, Secretary Education Iqbal Hussain Khan, Head of Cooperation of EU Delegation in Pakistan Mr. Ovidiu Mic, Head of TVET SSP Ms. Iris Cordelia Rotzoll, Director TESD Faizullah Lone along with representatives from donors’ organizations attended the conference.
The GB assembly speaker said that in the CPEC scenario, the region wa
s witnessing a number of mega economic interventions especially construction of dams and roads network, unexplored mineral resources, tourism, trade, renewable energy and emerging IT sector which is a huge job market and “We can get major benefits of this market by producing a skilled force.”
“To cater to this situation, it requires complementarities such as an effective TVET system that can adapt and produce the required trained workforce in GB, so that upcoming positions can be filled by a Pakistani work force,” he maintained.
Syed Amjad Zaidi also said that the partnership between Dtesd, TVET SSP and other development partners will help train the required workforce to meet the challenges for prosperity and economic growth in GB.
Addressing the audience, Mr. Ovidiu Mic said that the collaborative efforts of various development partners in this region can further build on what EU and its development partners have initiated with our engagement over the past decade.
This region has a lot of scope for a variety of skills in sectors such as construction, engineering, hospitality, information technology, and renewable energy, and “We look forward to continuing our engagement in the TVET sector here.”
The TVET SSP, which is funded by European Union, Germany and the Royal Norwegian Embassy, is implemented by the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NVTTC) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), in collaboration with regional TEVTAs, PVTC and regional TVET bodies like GB DTESD.
The GB government is taking concrete steps for the promotion of TVET sector through the approval of the TVET Act 2018 of Gilgit Baltistan.
The legislative process has opened doors for real-time reforms in the TVET Sector of this remote region. Some key initiatives of TVET SSP in Gilgit-Baltistan.
