Keeping in line with PTI’s earlier statements to support youth in the country, Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated the ‘Kamyab Jawan Programme,’ which is a flagship initiative of the PTI Government, on Thursday, October 17. Under this programme, the youth of Pakistan will be provided with numerous opportunities for growth, learning, and development. The purpose of this initiative is to provide economic support to the youth and generate more job opportunities for them.
Talking at the inauguration ceremony, Imran Khan remarked that Pakistan lacks meritocracy and that the previous governments could not make necessary arrangements for ensuring merit in the institutions. He further stressed on the point that merit is extremely critical for the success of any nation, and the only way a country can progress is through proper implementation of merit and fair play. He appreciated the diligence and hard work of his adviser on Youth Affairs, Mr. Usman Dar, for breathing life into such a pivotal youth empowerment initiative. Imran Khan also discussed how the state of Madinah rose from the ground because Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) believed in no discrimination of any kind against anyone, including minorities. Regarding this, he added:
“Always remember that great humans are those who dream big and think big. The great humans don’t only think about themselves but others as well. I have learnt the history of Madinah. Change doesn’t occur all at once; it takes time. There is not a button to press for change.”
Discussing different aspects of the programme, Imran Khan talked about how start-up oriented loans will be provided to the youth of the country. He said:
“We have allocated Rs. 100 billion to provide business-oriented loans to the youth of the country, and a total of Rs. 25 billion have been set aside for women. The programme will allow youth to take startup-driven loans of Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 5 million.”
Interest-free loans, going all the way up to Rs. 100,000 will be solely provided on the basis of merit. The process of acquiring loans will operate as per two categories. In the first category, the youth will be able to gets loans of up to Rs. 500, 000 at 6% mark-up with a 10% lending equity, whereas the second category will allow a loan of Rs. 5 million to be taken at a mark-up rate of 8% and a lending equity of 20%.
In addition to providing loans, this programme will also provide professional training grounds for the youth to equip them with necessary skills and expertise, and Rs. 10 billion will be spent on this. Moreover, Imran Khan also laid importance on how his government believes in the equal treatment of Madrassah students, adding that the youth programme will also focus on uplifting these Madrassahs and 500 skills laboratories will be established in this regard.
According to Usman Dar, this youth empowerment initiative has not made use of a single penny of taxpayers and is fully funded by the UN Development Programme, aimed at providing empowerment to the country’s youth for their future progress.
How to apply
When you visit the Kamyab Jawan Programme’s website, there will be an option to choose from the following – “Visit Portal” Or “Apply for Loan.”
The “Visit Portal” option is aimed at providing more information about the Kamyab Jawan Programme, including the different platforms present for youth, as well as the vision and mission of the government behind taking such an initiative. By clicking on the “Apply For Loan” option, a new page will be displayed, which will also have have a green box reading “Apply Online for Loan (PM’s Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme).” Candidates can click on this box and fill out the resulting Application Form for Loan, which will require them to enter basic information such as their Name, CNIC, Residential Address, Bank Name (for loan money transfer), Father’ s/Husband’s Name, and so on. Once the form has been filled out, the applicant will receive guidance regarding the remaining procedures through call or SMS.
Kamyab Jawan Programme is aimed at bringing about a revolution for the youth through the 3Es framework – Education, Employment, and Engagement. These 3Es are also the basic principles upon which the National Youth Development Framework (NYDF) was developed, and now the government has used the same underlying 3Es concept to provide socio-economic growth and development to Pakistan’s youth through the Kamyab Jawan Programme.