PESHAWAR, Sept 3: The NWFP is unlikely to get the desired results from the prime minister’s special programme of technical and vocational education due to lack of facilities, according to sources.

They said that most of the 37 vocational centres in the province were without principals and faced shortage of other staff and educational material.

The first phase of the programme, aimed at imparting vocational training to 300,000 youths, would be launched next month, but the situation in the province regarding technical and vocational education was not good, sources said.

“The spade work has been given final shape and funds for the programme will hopefully be released in the next four weeks,” said official sources. The students will be given Rs500 monthly stipend and the training expenses will be borne by the federal government.

However, sources painted a bleak picture of technical education institutes in the province, which will play basic role in the implementation of the programme.

They said that the merger of the Directorate of Manpower with the Directorate of Vocational Training in 2001 had dealt a severe blow to technical education in the province.

According to sources, the merger has created many management problems. Rules are non-existent after the merger and the seniority and promotion problems are haunting the staffers.

After the merger, the directorate has focused its attention on vocational and training colleges and vocational training centres have been ignored.

Sources said that it was of paramount importance for the NWFP to have a separate directorate of vocational training, like other provinces, to achieve desired results set forth in the prime minister’s programme.