The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved on Tuesday a $100 million loan to help improve technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in Punjab and ensure skills training meets job demand in important economic sectors.

A press release issued today by the ADB said that the “Improving Workforce Readiness in Punjab Project” will help enhance TVET’s quality and relevance to increase “graduates’ employability, upgrade workers’ skills, ensure more equitable access to training for women and disadvantaged groups, and improve management and strategic planning in TVET institutions”.

It stated that the project includes a $2m technical assistance grant from the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific which will help to strengthen the province’s TVET institutional framework and strategy.

ADB Director General for Central and West Asia Yevgeniy Zhukov said that Punjab contributed to over half of the country’s national income and was expected to make a “significant contribution” to post-flood recovery.

“ADB’s project will fund demand-driven and gender-focused training to boost livelihoods and support industries that are key to Pakistan’s recovery and future growth,” the press release quoted Zhukov as saying.

It added that the project will finance the establishment of 19 TVET centres of excellence in eight priority economic sectors: automobile assembly parts and repairs, construction, food processing, health, information and communication technology, light engineering, textiles and garments, and tourism and hospitality.

“They (the centres) will provide programmes with linkages to industry and deploy best practices. The project will include the development of skills training programmes using technology in response to emerging trends in the fourth industrial revolution,” the press release reads.

It further said that disaster resilience would be incorporated into the design of the excellence centres while training on how to prepare for and respond to disasters would also be provided given the country’s “high vulnerability to climate change”.

“Workers with improved skills in key areas such as construction and agriculture will be essential to implementing stronger safety standards, build back better and to help the country prepare for future natural hazards,” the press release quoted ADB Director for Social Sectors Rie Hiraoka as saying.

She added that the programme would also seek to support women and prioritise disadvantaged groups to improve their chances of finding quality jobs and boosting their incomes.

Today’s loan approval comes a day after the ADB announced that a $554m financing package, including new and reallocated funds, had been approved to support recovery and reconstruction efforts after the floods and to strengthen Pakistan’s disaster and climate resilience.