Combating poverty through technology driven education vital for economic prosperity
PESHAWAR (APP): In the bustling region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Inam Ali, an educated auto mechanic, is embodying the spirit of resilience and self-reliance by defeating poverty through hardwork .
As demands of cars were increased, so does the demand for his skills.
Amidst the rhythmic clangs of tools and the hum of machinery in his two-room auto workshop on GT Road in Pabbi Nowshera, Ali epitomized how individual efforts against poverty can contribute significantly to economic prosperity.
Ali’s workshop, established in 2015, is a hive of activity these days. With the patriotic songs of “A Jawan Manzil hai Aasman” playing softly on his mobile phone, he directed a team of five laborers with a focus that leaves little room for breaks, even to enjoy a traditional “Peshawari Rice Polao and Chappli Kabab” brought for him in the workshop.
This dedication underscored not just a personal commitment to his craft but also a broader contribution to his community and the national economy.
After completing his education, Inam Ali faced the harsh reality of unemployment, a problem he described as a “social curse.”
Despite applying for various public sector jobs, he was repeatedly turned away due to a lack of professional experience. However, this setback did not deter him. Instead, his father reached out to an old friend, who provided Inam with a crucial opportunity to gain practical experience in a auto workshop in Shoba Bazar Peshawar, a bustling auto repair hub.
Ali’s three-year stint there proved invaluable. Today, he is well-regarded in his community, earning the respectful title of “Ustad” for being an expert in fitting CNG kits and vehicles repairs in his relative workshop.
Following five-year experiences, Inam has established his own workshop at Pabbi where customers from Nowshera, Peshawar and even from Afghanistan were coming for the installation of CNGs tanks and maintenance of vehicles, thus financially contributing to the country’s development process.
“The labour charges of CNG installations varies keeping in view of size of the vehicles and number of CNG tanks,” said Inam, adding normally we charge Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 per CNG tank installation while Rs 10000 in cars engines repair.
He said an increase in the conversion of vehicles to CNG has been witnessed due to a hike in petroleum products owing to the global economic recession.
“I have come from Nowshera district to install CNG kit in my car ” said Fayaz Khan, a retired Govt servant while talking to APP. However, he complained about increase in prices of CNG tanks, engine overhauling and labour charges that needed to be regulated by the district administration.
Dr Muhammad Naeem, former Chairman Economics Department, University of Peshawar said that technical education encourages self-employment and ensures financial independence.
He said that about 58.9 million population of Pakistan was aged below 30 years and providing jobs to all of them was impossible for any government, adding out of 58.9 million youth population, about 40 pc is associated with labour workforce.
Pakistan’s population is growing with about two percent rate and likely to become double in 2050 for which thousands of jobs would be required in government and private sectors besides oversees for which technical education was key.
More than 11 million Pakistanis had proceeded to over 50 countries for employment till December 2019 and sent about USD 21.84 billion during 2019 that was very low compared and it could be enhanced by promoting IT, civil, electrical and auto engineering.
Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) KP spokesman said that agreements with 32 reputable private organizations were signed to provide technical education to youth.
He said that Rs1 billion projects were started for purchase of equipment and other schemes while the authority’s budget increased from Rs3 billion in 2016-17 to record Rs7 billion in 2002-23.
Under Education for All Vision 2030, he said about 5,000 students in each district of KP would be provided vocational training in IT and other technologies every year besides Rs2,000 scholarship per month to capture Gulf’s viz a viz EU markets.
Besides launching of Rs 1.30 billion self-employment scheme to provide soft loan up to Rs 0.3 million to skilled youth, he said 11 technical colleges were constructed and eight new technical colleges were being built in different districts of KP.
A sub-campus of the National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore would be established at Peshawar where architecture, fine art, textiles and other designs would be taught.
Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) official told APP that the talented FA/FSc students from over 9.3 million beneficiaries would be selected for training in information technology and other technology cadres for self-financial empowerment.
Scholarship of Rs2000 for primary, Rs2500 for elementary and Rs3500 for higher secondary level boy students and Rs 2500, Rs 3000 and Rs 4500 per girl student respectively were being proved after every three months to BISP beneficiaries, he concluded.
