KARACHI: The young Pakistanis aged 21-45 who have participated in vocational and business training provided by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will receive access to affordable credit from National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to develop small businesses.
An official of the NBP said on Thursday that the facility will be provided as part of the Prime Minister’s Youth Business Loan Scheme (PMYBL).
He said that a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed on Thursday between the UNDP and NBP to increase awareness and access to finance to youth under the PMYBL scheme.
The signing ceremony took place at the office of the UNDP in Islamabad. MoU was signed by Neil Buhne, United Nations resident coordinator and UNDP humanitarian coordinator, and Saeed Ahmad, president and CEO, on behalf of the NBP.
“Harnessing the drive and energy of young Pakistanis is critical to building a vibrant economy and a peaceful and prosperous society,” said Neil Buhne.
“By ensuring that qualified young men and women from traditionally marginalized communities have access to finance and economic opportunity, we will promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth that benefits everyone in society.”
Saeed Ahmad stated that in Pakistan, over 60pc of the population is under the age of 30 years. Public and private sectors provide jobs; however, it is imperative for the youth to explore other opportunities such as starting their own businesses in accordance with their skill set.
Under this two-year partnership, past and present participants in UNDP training programmes will be invited to information sessions conducted by the NBP and offer them support to apply to the PMYBL to increase their chance of benefitting from the facility. Successful applicants will be eligible for loans starting from PKR 100,000 up to PKR2,000,000 under favourable terms to help them establish or grow their businesses.
Information sessions will be held in Peshawar, DI Khan and Bannu in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Quetta and Karachi.
UNDP is also working with the governments of Balochistan, KP and Sindh to develop small and medium enterprises and youth entrepreneurship through training and mentorship programmes.
Saeed Ahmad appreciated the hand holding exercise and direction which UNDP is providing to the youth of Pakistan under their vocational training programmes.
Makhdoom Adeel, the chief coordinator PM loan programme, also attended this meeting. He lauded the efforts of the NBP and mentioned that the government of Pakistan has designed a “youth implementation strategy”, where all the provinces will come together and work on empowering the youth present in their respective regions.
