Context: In 2021, out of Pakistan’s estimated total population of 220 million, over 68 per cent is below the age of 30 and around 27 per cent is made up of youth (those aged 15—29, as defined in Pakistan). Owing to this ‘youth bulge’, the Government of Pakistan highly prioritizes the empowerment of young people. Youth are recognized as having potential to uplift the country’s socio-economic status; their latent talent can be harnessed by providing opportunities for their growth and personal development.
Implementation of programme/ initiative: In January 2018, the ‘Youth Empowerment Programme (Kamyab Jawan)’ was introduced by UNDP Pakistan and has since been implemented with the Government of Pakistan. The project timespan is five years, with a total budget of nearly USD 22 million, made up of contributions from numerous donors, including from the Governments of Australia, Japan, Norway and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as well as the United Nations Population Fund and non-governmental entities. The Kamyab Jawan project is a sustainable platform for action which creates a national environment in which youth are provided constitutional recognition, social protection and equal opportunities for participation in various activities. The project uses a multi-approach strategy that aims to support youth in conflict-affected areas of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh. It has three core elements: the Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (YES) designed to enable start-ups and promote youth entrepreneurship; the Skills Scholarships Scheme (Hunarmand Pakistan) to train and equip youth with industry 4.0 high-tech and high-end traditional skills to gain employment in domestic and international markets; and the National Youth Council as a means for young Pakistanis to provide input to policymaking. The project builds on interaction and collaboration between youth and key policy actors. This, in turn, leads to better informed youth who can actively participate in and influence inclusive decision-making processes.
Main challenges: Historically, there has been limited effort to ensure youth’s productive engagement in the skills training sector, resulting in limited training capacity, outdated workshops and laboratories, obsolete training equipment and antiquated curricula. Due to the lack of youth-focused developments, young people are more vulnerable to violence and conflict – a situation exacerbated by the volatile security situation in the country – and are unable to meet sufficient skills training requirements.
Results achieved: Whilst implementation is ongoing, the project has shown promising results thus far. As of 2020, 4,545 young people have engaged in policy planning processes, structure, and activities. Moreover, 20,226 youth have been provided with skills development training in the areas of entrepreneurship, digital literacy, information and technology and trade. The project has also shown resilience against the COVID-19 pandemic: 28 youth-led innovative solutions have been implemented to support COVID-19 risk communication and community engagement, and more than 10,000 rural young women have been engaged in awareness campaigns related to COVID-19. Overall, several youth have reported that livelihood opportunities have improved, and many have been able to benefit from having found job placements.
Moving Forward: Before the project closing date (January 2023), Kamyab Jawan is expected to engage with over 5,000 youth in federal and provincial policy planning processes. The project also intends to have upwards of 6,000 young people participating in civic education and enhancing their soft skills and critical thinking to better promote diversity and tolerance for more peaceful co-existence in society. Furthermore, the project has targeted nearly 5,000 young women and men to be provided with training, entrepreneurship and job placement support in Sindh.
Replicability: Kamyab Jawan demonstrates how young people’s potential can be meaningfully catalysed to contribute to a more inclusive society and sustainable economic development. The project shows that engaging youth and their innovative ideas can help resolve apparently intractable issues, such as mitigating conflicts and strengthening social cohesion for communities in conflict-prone areas. Despite resource constraints and challenges of COVID-19, the project shows how it is possible to go ahead with implementation by making adjustments, while remaining focussed on rendering the ‘youth bulge’ into a multiplier for progressive transformation. In this regard, the project shows that youth have emerged as active and resourceful agents of positive change and development, a process that, with commitment and persistence, can be replicated elsewhere.
Acknowledgement:
This good practice was kindly prepared by Ms. Alysha Brahmantiara Putri.
References:
https://open.undp.org/projects/00086132
https://www.pk.undp.org/content/pakistan/en/home/projects/yep.html
Youth Empowerment Programme & Innovation Portfolio Journey | UNDP in Pakistan
Kamyab Jawan: Empowering the youth of Pakistan (nation.com.pk)
Project Details
Date: December 13, 2021