Pakistan: Providing Employable Skills to Youth in Punjab Province

Challenge

Every year, millions of youth in Punjab are unable to enter the labor market as they lack market relevant skills. The main challenge is the lack of relevant skills development at the early stages of career progression. The project aims to improve the quality and access to market relevant skills, through technical training programs in priority sectors in Punjab, including the engineering, textiles, construction and food industries.

Approach

In support of Punjab’s Growth Strategy 2018, the project focuses on the training and skilling the youth in the province. The program supports a two-fold approach to improving the employability of Punjab’s youth, focused both on policy reform and strengthening the delivery of demand driven skills including mechanical, electrical, plumbing, auto-mechanical and culinary skills.

Policy reform for technical education in the province is targeted by supporting the establishment of a single regulation agency. The project is strengthening existing technical training institutes by restructuring their operations. Increased autonomy and effectiveness is tackled through budget reallocation for priority courses and sectors, which ensure the availability of market relevant courses. These institutes are now also focused on improved job placement and tracking while developing labor market information management and systems.

The technical skills program is further strengthened with the technical support of the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ). The skills curriculum for market relevant courses are developed and implemented through competency-based learning assessments. Public-private partnerships have been established to support a collaboration with private sector industry specialists, who aid graduates’ in their skills development by advising on which skills are demanded in their industries.

Results

The Punjab Skills Development Program aims to support employability of youth of Punjab and has achieved the following results between July 2015 to August 2018:

• Developed more than 30 competency-based learning assessments in priority sectors and trained 16,000 graduates. At least 80 public and private institutes offered courses contributing to this – including DESCON Engineering, Infinity Engineering (Light Engineering), Crescent Bahuman (Textiles), Technical Education & Vocational Training Authority Punjab (TEVTA Punjab).
• 12 public-private agreements signed with industry partners for market-based skills trainings. More than 800 students were trained. Private sector partners included Honda, Millat Tractors, Bunny’s, Descon Engineering and Crescent Bahuman.
• Increased access in market relevant trades offered by public and private sector training providers, enrolling 52,000 students.
• Creating a conducive well-functioning skills sector policy landscape, by supporting 4 reform areas towards a single and consolidated testing agency – including the development of a draft Punjab Skills Development Authority Act, functional reviews of existing testing agencies, and the restructuring of TEVTA Punjab and Punjab Vocational Training Council (PVTC).

Bank Group Contribution

The World Bank is implementing $50 million in International Development Agency (IDA) support and providing technical assistance for program implementation and supervision.

Partners

There is a strong partnership between the World Bank and the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), supporting the curriculum through the national Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) program.

Moving Forward

As part of the skills development agenda for Punjab, it is envisaged that supporting demand side skills, encouraging private sector participation and supporting skills training in priority sectors will play a critical role in transforming Punjab and help the province achieve its objective of employment-intensive economic growth. This will require a focus on employment generation by reviving employment-intensive sectors and creating quality jobs by addressing critical gaps in human capital development such as training, employability and both soft and technical skills programs. It will be important to pave the way forward with a human capital enhancement lens, a critical path to the overall economic development and growth for the province and its people. Skills training is a valuable tool to realize human capital.