500,000 youth set for foreign employment

Khushal Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Program envisages ambitious target

PESHAWAR:

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Caretaker Chief Minister Justice (retd) Syed Arshad Hussain Shah has said that soon the Khushal Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Program will be launched, under which steps will be taken to fix the financial problems of the people, create employment opportunities for youth, and make the public service system in line with public expectations.

He said short-term measures will be implemented immediately, while long-term measures will be proposed to the incoming elected government. This will provide a road map for the incoming government to continue the public welfare initiatives. These views were expressed by the chief minister while presiding over the 17th meeting of the caretaker cabinet on Monday, in which members of the caretaker provincial cabinet, chief secretary, additional chief secretary interior, administrative secretaries, and key officials participated.

With regard to the specific features of the Khushal Pakhtunkhwa program, he said that the improvement of law and order and the financial situation are at the top of the agenda of this program, apart from the emphasis on improving governance and public service delivery.

He said attention will be given to IT-based courses according to the demands of the international market to enable the youth to get employment abroad so that they can make their place in the international market and create employment opportunities for themselves.

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He said that under this program, up to 500,000 youth will be sent abroad for employment next year.

The provincial cabinet approved a de-worming initiative for school-age children with a cost of Rs218.7 million during the financial year 2023–24. It was also directed that in the future, whenever such a program is made with the help of aid agencies, it should also estimate the future burden on the provincial government.

The cabinet approved the transfer of four kanals of government land to the judiciary for the construction of a judicial complex in Tehsil Shringal, District Dir Upper, with the condition that along with this, revenue courts will also be constructed so that the people can have facilities in one place.

The cabinet directed that wherever judicial courts are built in the future, revenue and administrative court buildings should also be built adjacent to them so that people and lawyers can easily go to different courts.

The provincial government also approved the removal of the ban imposed on the repair and maintenance of government buildings and offices.

The meeting reviewed various reports on the issue of the inclusion of Malakand Levies in the police force. Since this issue can be resolved through legislation and involves many complex and far-reaching legal, political, and financial issues, it was decided to postpone the decision until the next elected government.

The cabinet also approved to return 1,000 kanals of land acquired for Bacha Khan Medical College Mardan to its owners. This land was acquired in 2009 for proposed expansion of Bacha Khan Medical College, but as a result of various lawsuits, the value of this land had increased.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 12^th, 2023.