Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan chairs B-TEVTA meeting on digitising technical education and jobs for youth

QUETTA: A key meeting on the affairs of B-TEVTA was held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Balochistan Shakeel Qadir Khan. The meeting was given a detailed briefing on a comprehensive strategy to improve technical and vocational education in the province and connect young people with jobs.

The Managing Director of B-TEVTA presented a review of ongoing and upcoming projects at the provincial level. He said the authority was moving rapidly to put the technical and vocational education and training system in Balochistan on modern lines. Under this vision, training of young people is being started, and the training curriculum is being updated to meet the needs of the domestic and international labour market.

He said a 90-day priority plan was being implemented effectively to digitise the institutions (Digital B-TEVTA) and to make the admission system centralised and transparent.

Chief Secretary’s directives

Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan directed that the various technical institutions working under B-TEVTA be organised under central monitoring and quality standards, so that resource sharing, learning standards and results improve. He also issued orders to increase partnership with the private sector, to connect trainees with jobs through internships and job fairs, and to ease access to microfinancing or small business loans.

He said that, to strengthen the provincial economy, special focus would be placed on skills in high demand in local industry, construction, agricultural machinery and the IT sector. The meeting also decided on reforms in institutions under B-TEVTA, modernisation of the curriculum, the introduction of standard certification, and a more effective monitoring and evaluation mechanism to assess the impact of training.

The Chief Secretary stressed that the programme must be implemented in a transparent, timely and results-based manner, so that young people can acquire skills as soon as possible in line with the demands of the local and international market and find employment.

Fully digital system

The meeting was told that B-TEVTA was making significant progress towards fully digitising the authority. Under the HRMS, verified records of employees and establishments of all affiliated departments will be available on a single platform, while the MIS will bring together all information on institutions, trainees, trades, admissions and performance.

Transparency will be ensured by linking the biometric attendance system with HR and salary controls, while trained people will be connected with labour market opportunities through a skills data bank and job portals.

Photo: Courtesy DGPR Balochistan