KHAR: The local youth and social activists have shown dismay over increase in unemployment in the tribal areas and urged the government to take tangible steps to provide job opportunities to people.

They were speaking during a meeting of the newly established “Thinkers Association Bajaur” here on Monday. The meeting, presided over by TAB president Shahid Ali Khan, was attended by social activists, youth and educated people in a large number.

The participants of the meeting said that unemployment ratio in tribal areas was increased manifolds during the past few years. They criticised government for not creating job opportunities for the youth and educated people of the tribal areas. They said that thousands of posts in different government departments had been lying vacant since 2010.

The speakers said that lack of job opportunities and ban on recruitments in the government departments in tribal areas by the federal government was the main cause of unemployment in the region.

They said that Fata was the fifth largest populated region of the country, but its share in the government jobs was only two per cent.

The participants also said that hundreds of people belonging to different districts of the province were appointed in tribal areas on the basis of fake Fata domiciles.

Published in Dawn, January 9th, 2018