ISLAMABAD: A leading beverage manufacturer on Saturday launched "Roshan Kal" - a virtual internship programme for 300 university graduates across Pakistan - to promote research-based projects for youth employment and skills development.
According to an announcement of the company here on Saturday, PepsiCo Pakistan has launched a virtual internship program for 300 graduates of the PepsiCo-Amal Youth program. The "Roshan Kal" internship aims to provide experiential learning, industry exposure and an insider perspective to young university graduates. It is significant to note that 50 percent of the participants in the program will be women.
"Roshan Kal" program will provide mentorship, guidance and a platform for the interns to put the life skills they have acquired into action. The program is designed to be a digitalized, interactive, engaging and immersive experience.
It will focus on bringing out the interns' creativity, innovation and agility; skills that will give them a competitive advantage in the ever-changing world, both professionally and personally.
The assignments will be research-based projects varying from topics such as analyzing consumer buying trends, technology solutions for the new normal and learning about organization culture and processes.
Furqan Ahmed Syed, CEO of PepsiCo Pakistan and Afghanistan, said, "Supporting Pakistan's youth is part of our 'Winning with Purpose' agenda and reflects PepsiCo's ambition to win sustainably in the marketplace and embed purpose into all aspects of our business.
The Roshan Kal Virtual internship program is a continuation of our commitment to youth in alignment with the Pakistan government's 'Kamyab Jawan Program'. This year we expanded our internship program for hundreds of young Pakistani graduates in order to provide them with a virtual working experience."
Pakistan's growing youth population is actively seeking employment opportunities. Despite technical expertise, the key workplace barrier to entry is the professional skills gap. PepsiCo has partnered with Amal Academy to fill this gap by providing professional skills to university graduates so they can gain meaningful employability skills.
The PepsiCo Amal Youth program was launched in 2019 as a pilot to train 1,000 students. In 2020, with PepsiCo's support, Amal Academy has expanded to Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and aims to double the impact by training over 2,000 students by end of this year.
Tamakanat Saad, an intern from Faisalabad, said, "I am thrilled to have been selected for 'Roshan Kal'. This virtual internship is a blessing in disguise, as my location doesn't become a hindrance in benefiting from such an incredible opportunity. I am keen to make the most of this experience: to learn and grow and excited to see the doors that it will open for me."
This investment in youth is part of PepsiCo's broader social impact commitment in Pakistan following the recent announcement of its intention to invest Rs775 million in social programs over the next 3 years. Investment in social impact is part of the company's broader vision to be the global leader in convenient foods and beverages by Winning with Purpose.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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