ISLAMABAD: The International Development Association (IDA) will provide a $50 million loan for Punjab government’s skill development project.

Official sources said on Saturday that the $60m project, to be implemented over a period of five years, would work towards strengthening public institutions by regulating and delivering skill training services.

This will be achieved by developing a single agency which will be responsible for accreditation, regulation and certification of all training providers in the province.

The project will work to raise the quality of skilled graduates by introducing competency-based training and assessment and improved collaboration between employers and training providers to increase the industrial relevance of training content.

By increasing access to market-relevant trades, the project would help supply skilled workers in demand-driven trades and raise the level of enrolment in technical and vocational training courses that produce the skills needed in the priority economic sectors identified in the Punjab Growth Strategy and Skills Strategy and Vision 2018.

The sources said that the project activity would take place in urban or semi-urban areas.

Published in Dawn, January 25th, 2015

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