KARACHI, Aug 7: The Sindh government has expedited the selection process for youth skills development programme to ensure its launch on Sept 1.

It has been reliably learnt that selection of youths is under way at present. The government will provide necessary training to 10,000 youths under the Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Youth Development Programme in eight different trades.

The progress of youth skills programme was reviewed at a meeting held under the chairmanship of Sindh Chief Secretary Fazal-ur-Rehman a couple of days back. Secretaries of the provincial departments of education, health, information technology, works and services, agriculture, labour, culture and women development were present.

The chief secretary later told Dawn that the provincial steering and technical committees had already been formed and notified. The private sector had also been taken onboard regarding vacancies in each sector in collaboration with the FPCCI, KCCI, HCCI, and LCCI in Sindh, he said. Besides, he said that the employment exchanges, which at present were not functional, would be reactivated and upgraded with computers and modern technology to keep complete data of vacancies in the market and the available skilled manpower to meet the internal and external demands.

In the first phase, eight departments would launch the programme with 40,000 trainees. In the labour department, 10,000 trainees would be engaged. Of them 7,700 would be trained in 24 different trades in the existing 23 technical training institutes between six and 12 months, which would cost over Rs48,000 per head.

Likewise, he said, 2,300 trainees would be employed in hotel and automobile industry.

In health department 4,675 youths would be given training, which would include one-year practical work, at public and private institutes. It would cost Rs100,532 per head.

In education department 6,000 youths would get six-month training for teaching in English language, Mathematics and Science subjects. The cost had been calculated at Rs77,800 per head.

In information technology department, 7,000 selected youths would be offered a one-year course in higher technologies. This would cost over Rs40,000 per head.

In agriculture department, 7,000 youths would be trained in 10 different trades and each youth training programme would cost over Rs48,000 while in works and services department, 2,000 graduate and diploma-holder engineers as well as matriculate to graduates would be equipped with skills through a four-month course to be offered at engineering universities and technical colleges. This would cost over Rs80,000 per head.

In women development department, 1,067 unemployed females would be offered secretarial work, beautician, entrepreneurship and child care courses for three to four months. Each course training would cost over Rs52,000 per head.

In livestock and fisheries department, 3,200 vet doctors and paramedics would be provided on-job training which would cost over Rs87,000 per head.

In second phase, the chief secretary said, 8,000 to 10,000 youths would be imparted training in textile industry, PIA, Engro foods, Ensign communications, IBP, Abad, Navtec and etc. Besides, training programmes for mines and mineral development, culture and tourism, irrigation and power, population welfare, forest and wildlife and local government have also been planned.