Promoting entrepreneurship: Rs1b loan provided to 18,000 Punjab students

Money provided to those hailing from smaller districts

LAHORE: Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) has provided interest-free loans worth Rs1 billion to 18,000 students across the province.

This was stated by TEVTA Chairperson Irfan Qaiser Sheikh as he addressed a meeting at the TEVTA Secretariat on Wednesday, according to a press release.

He said that when he joined the organisation, a surplus amount of Rs500 million was available. “To utilise this amount, TEVTA decided to provide interest-free loans to its students and an agreement was signed with the Akhuwat Foundation,” he added.

He maintained the reason for provision of these loans was to enhance entrepreneurship culture among the youth of Punjab which could help them start their own business instead of looking forward for jobs as space for less experienced employees had shrunk in recent years.

“Therefore, we wanted to make our youth more empowered so they could easily start their own business in their respective fields,” he said.

“This model of empowering youth is quite common and very successful in developed countries. Nations who realise the importance of youth and how to properly utilise them are now ruling the world.”

“Fortunately, we have now realised this fact and are investing on our youth,” he remarked.

He said the result of such investment would strengthen the economy of the country.

Irfan Sheikh observed that since the agreement, loans had been provided to students of 17 districts of Punjab, including Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Sahiwal, DG Khan, Gujranwala and Jhang.

He said that the loans were sanctioned to students who belonged to Southern Punjab and smaller districts.

He explained that students of Jahania District were awarded loans of Rs97 million, whereas Rs93 million were provided to students of Sahiwal, Rs73 million to students of Dera Ghazi Khan and Rs65 million to the students of Jhang.

Similarly, he said an amount of Rs100 million was disbursed among the students of Faisalabad, Rs79 million to the students of Sargodha, Rs65 million to students in Jhelum, Rs58 million in Gujranwala and Rs58 million each for Kasur and Mianwali.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 8^th, 2018.