Skill Development Program Through BTEVTA

Skill Development Program through BTEVTA (SDP) is a PSDP Project which was approved by the Government of Balochistan in August, 2014 at total cost of Rs. 1200.00 Million which was modified in the year 2018 by PDWP to achieve the mentioned below objectives:

Project objectives and its relationship with Sector’s objectives

The objectives of the project have been set as under:

• Develop Technical and Vocational Skills in Youth of Balochistan;
• Upgrade the existing infrastructure with facility of equipment provisions;
• Trigger Apprenticeship Training in the province in the light of Apprenticeship Act;
• Encouragement of Entrepreneurship by introduction of Entrepreneurship Module;
• Introduction of Competency Based Training (CBT);
• Reinforcing and increasing the efficiency of existing Training Centers of allied departments of BTEVTA;
• Expanding the capabilities of Project Staff as future staff of BTEVTA;
• Lay foundation of sustainable technical and vocational trainings;
• Strengthening of Public – Private Partnership;
• Strengthen institutions / agencies with regard to skill development;
• Establishment of Institute Management Committees (IMCs);
• To introduce Flexible Training Delivery by signing MOUs with Public/Private Sector;
• reduce burden of unemployment in the province by enabling the youth to get involved in livelihood activities;
• Capacity building of BTEVTA and its stakeholders both inland and foreign;
• Increase productivity of the workforce and therefore in turn enhance employability;
• Increase adoptability of the workforce to the needs of the markets;
• Make TEVT a vehicle for future industrial and economic development in Balochistan;

The overall objective of the B-TEVTA is to provide feeble economy of Balochistan with qualified and competitive workers and to train the youth for their participation in sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction as well as increase their employability oversees.

Out of seven pillars of Pakistan Vision 2025, the first one is “Putting people first: developing human and social capital”. One major weakness of development journey of Pakistan is neglect of human resource development. The case of Balochistan is not much different from that of national situation. Vision 2025 seeks to bring human resource development to the top of national agenda. This requires capitalizing upon existing social capital, strengthening it and improving the human skill base of the population to optimally contribute to and effectively benefit from economic growth.

Balochistan Comprehensive Development Strategy 2013-2020, prepared by P&D department of Balochistan in collaboration with United Nations Development Program-UNDP, states that the Technical Education & Training side presents additional challenges. First, institutionally the subject is distributed amongst the following four provincial departments:

• Higher and Technical Education,
• Labour and Manpower,
• Industries & Commerce, and
• Social Welfare

Each of the department has different roles and objectives but each has something in common when it comes to technical and vocational training. In one form or the other these departments have direct or indirect bearing on employability of labor force which includes youth as well.

Relevant objectives of Labor department are:

1. Improve working conditions;
2. Advance opportunities for profitable employment;

• Assist workforce to increase earnings; and

1. Increase outreach and service to employers.

One of objectives of the Industries department is to facilitate developing entrepreneurships, which require technical and vocational skills.

On the other hand, Social Welfare department has objective of development and extension of remedial, curative, vocational and rehabilitation services for handicapped, destitute and other socially oppressed groups.

The objectives of the project link with those of the concerned departments. In fact, B-TEVTA is the authority that has been formed to effectively deal with the subject of technical and vocational trainings.

Project benefits analysis:

1. Financial

• The project is expected to contribute in economic growth in services sector
• It will help raise families income levels, thus taking families out of poverty

1. Social benefits with indicators

• Opportunity for individuals to make technical or vocational fields’ career
• Opportunity for unemployed youth to have means livelihood
• Engagement of the youth in productive activities preventing them to indulge in activities detrimental for society
• Increase productivity of labor force
• Prepare youth for getting engaged in industrial jobs, however small the existence of the industries may be in Balochistan
• Develop network of people having technical and vocational skills
• Increase profit margins of the trained workforce
• Generate higher quality of work in the market
• Increase self-motivation
• Lower employment turnover rate
• Lead to greater employee versatility
• Employment generation (direct and indirect)

This project is not meant for employment generation rather preparing the youth for employment opportunities in the provincial, national and international market.

1. Environmental impact

This is not applicable as there is no mega construction in the project. Similarly, no heavy technology interventions.