Holistic approach: ‘Economic growth dependent on skilled labour’

LAHORE:

Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) chairperson Irfan Qaiser Sheikh said on Thursday that the availability of trained manpower was inextricably linked to economic growth and industrial progress.

He was addressing several industrial representatives and trade unionists at the TEVTA Secretariat. Qaiser said the authority was training labour in 350 trades and 136 technologies. He said the authority was running one to three-month and one to four-year long courses for them.

Qaiser said the government was supporting technical education and vocational training to help private businesses. He said it was doing this to encourage economic growth.

Qaiser said the TEVTA would formulate a mechanism regarding this to achieve the desired results. He said the authority would adopt a holistic approach in this regard by taking the views of all stakeholders into account.

The authority had convened the meeting to take the private sector in confidence regarding the conducting curriculum preparation, training need assessment, on the job training and alumni placement.

Qaiser said TEVTA would revamp its training programmes and introduce new courses according to industrial needs at 370 training institutions across the Punjab.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 17^th, 2014.