Despite being cash-strapped: PML-N government planning to launch schemes worth billions of rupees to woo youth

A cash-strapped government of PML-N is planning to launch a host of schemes worth billions of rupees, all aimed at benefiting youth, including provision of interest-free micro-finance loans, laptops, skill development and fee reimbursement. Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the chairperson of PM's Youth Programme, is personally supervising all the schemes and guiding relevant officials to devise cogent policies to ensure complete transparency in all the projects.
Giving details about each scheme, an official of the PM's Youth Programme told Business Recorder on Wednesday that a PM's interest-free loan scheme is soon to be launched. The scheme is aimed at helping the industry raise current access level of 2.5 million people to 5.0 million over the next five years Under this scheme, vulnerable rural and urban poor with a poverty score of up to 40 all over Pakistan, preferably limited and un-served areas, would be covered for the advances.
"Double dipping will be avoided at all cost to those who are recipients of loans under BISP while 50 percent of the loans will go to women borrowers," the official said. The focus will be on districts with no or low microfinance network facilities. The scheme will not carry any mark-up.
The tenure of the loan would be up to three years and on average 250,000 loans of Rs 25,000 will be given. An amount of Rs 3.5 billion has been earmarked for the scheme for financial year 2013-14. The microfinance loan scheme would be executed by Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund, through enlisted partner organisations and community organisations with necessary expertise and experience.
Another scheme is aimed at training educated youth through internship in private and public sector offices. All graduates with 16 years of education from HEC approved educational institutions, not more than 25 years of age (26 for less-developed areas), will be eligible to apply under the scheme. "A monthly stipend of Rs 10,000 will be granted to each student for 12 months to a total of 50,000 interns from across the country," the official said.
All leading private sector firms/bodies and development sector organisations, federal, provincial and local government offices, including educational institutions, will be offered services of the internees. To train the unemployed youth, a skill development scheme is being launched for young men/women aged up to 35 years with middle-level education.
On average fee support would be Rs 3,000 per month for six months along with a stipend of Rs 2,000 per month. A total of 25,000 trainees will be imparted training under the scheme and a total of Rs 800 million has been allocated in the year 2013-14. Briefing about the fee reimbursement scheme, the official said the scheme is aimed at encouraging pursuit of higher education by students from less developed areas through financing of their tuition fees paid directly to universities. All students registered in Masters and Ph.D programmes in an HEC-approved public sector educational institution would be eligible to apply. Students domiciled in interior Sindh, Southern Punjab (Divisions of Multan, Bahawalpur and DG Khan), entire Balochistan, less developed areas of KP (Malakand, Kohistan and D.I. Khan Areas), GB and FATA have been identified so far for the geographical coverage of the scheme.
Average tuition fees under the scheme would be Rs 40,000 per annum per student and 30,000 students would be accommodated under the scheme. Elaborating on the laptop scheme, the official said the objective of the scheme is the provision of laptops to brilliant students studying in public sector higher education institutions on a merit basis. All students registered with HEC-approved educational institutions will be eligible under the scheme; the bifurcation/quota is as follows: All Ph D / M Phil / Masters students will be eligible to get a laptop and 50 percent of the under-graduate students will be entitled under the scheme while 5 percent of Associate Engineer/Diploma students in polytechnics institutes will be entitled.