ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan will launch the Kamyab Naujawan Programme next month.

A meeting presided over by Mr Khan at the Prime Minister Office on Thursday was informed that under the programme, 500,000 youths will be given soft loans worth Rs100 billion.

Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister said the programme would not only provide monetary assistance to youths but also help prosper local industries.

“Pakistani youths are very talented as they prove themselves in all fields,” he said.

Special Assistant to the PM on Youth Affairs Usman Dar briefed the prime minister on the programme and said that in first phase, the framework of National Youth Development Strategic Roadmap had been completed and also National Youth Council had been set up.

Soft loans worth Rs100 billion will be given to 500,000 youths

He said that under the programme, many schemes, including Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme, Green Youth Movement, Start-up Pakistan, Internship Programme, Hunarmand Naujawan and National Entrepreneur Programme, would be launched.

Mr Dar said a special portal was being formed under which record of all youths, to be registered under the programme, would be gathered. “This will provide credible data of youths,” he added.

He said there was a limited scope of utilisation of youth loans in the past but in this programme, the scope of loans had been expended.

The special assistant said that under the first category, youths would be given Rs100,000 to Rs500,000 and in the second category, they will get loans up to Rs5 million.

He said the government had removed the condition of personal guarantee of a third person in provisional loans from banks and now young people would get loans directly through the portal.

In the first phase, the National Bank of Pakistan, Bank of Khyber and Bank of Punjab will provide loans.

Mr Dar informed the prime minister that basic purpose of establishing the portal was to eliminate possibility of any favour, choice and discretionary powers but to ensure transparency and merit in provision of loans.

He said all applications would be forwarded to banks through the portal and their record would also be maintained at the PM Office so that the prime minister could keep an eye on the whole process.

The special assistant said that in the past youth loans could be utilised in limited sectors, but in this programme it was being ensured that youths would do their businesses in information technology, e-commerce and other such sectors.

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2019