Income source: Youth urged to acquire technical skills

ISLAMABAD: Youth possessing technical skills are likely to earn more than some engineers and doctors, National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC) Executive Director Zulfiqar Ahmad Cheema said according to a press release issued on Sunday.

Speaking at the Zonal Skills Competition organised by the commission at the National Training Bureau, he implied that a qualified welder, mechanic or fashion designer can bag earnings at par with his competitors in white-collar sector.

As representative of the employers, Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) President Raja Aamir Iqbal was also present.

According to the statement, hundreds of young people from Technical and Vocational Education Authority (TVETA) partner institutes from the private and public sector participated in the event.

Students showed their skills in 10 diversified trades including plumbing, industrial electrician, welding, beautician, fashion designing and dress making, general electrician, civil surveyor, quantity surveyor, auto-cad and graphic designing.

Cheema said that instead of running after jobs, our youth should focus on acquiring marketable skills, as it is only through gaining skills that they would be able to support their families and may earn even more than doctors and engineers

The RCCI chief appreciating the initiatives of NAVTTC for producing skilled workforce said such competitions boost morale of the students. Iqbal praised the skills of the trainees and committed to offer them jobs in Rawat Industrial Zone.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 29^th, 2016.