ISLAMABAD, Feb 21: The Federal Ministry of Education has decided in principle to set up a National Technical and Vocational Training Authority (NTVTA) for the promotion of technical education in the country, Dawn has learnt.

An official source said a presentation in this regard would soon be given to the prime minister to gain formal approval. The ministry, after fulfilling the initial formalities and taking all stakeholders on board, has worked out a draft for the presentation, he said.

It is worth mentioning here that the education ministry has already announced that it will establish district-level technical training & vocational centres throughout the country. Education Minister Lt-Gen (retired) Javed Ashraf Qazi has been advocating promotion of technical education.

The country is facing shortage of skilled manpower, and to meet the ever-increasing demand in this regard at both the national and international level, the government has decided to set up more training centres, the source said.

The proposed technical and vocational training centres will not be working on the lines of similar centres that are already functioning. Instead, they will cater to the modern day needs for skillful manpower, the source said.

Earlier, Pakistani work force was imported mainly by the middle eastern countries for mostly manual work. But now when computer literacy has become a requirement for almost all sorts of jobs, things have totally changed.

Therefore, in the wake of ongoing competition in the job market, India, with its huge bank of manpower, is claiming a major share compared to Pakistan. Only recently, there was a demand for 5,000 nurses in some countries, however, due to lack of proficiency level required, "the offer slipped through our hands," the source said. He said the new vocational and technical training centres would also offer courses for masons and plumbers.