Development in Newly Merged Districts

Development in Newly Merged Districts

Development in Newly Merged Districts

By Fatima Faraz Hoti

The 25th Amendment in the Constitution of Pakistan received assent from the President of Pakistan on 31 May 2018, after which the Federally Administered seven tribal agencies were officially merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Keeping in view the sensitivities and strategic importance of merged districts, stability and development in these newly merged districts along the border with Afghanistan, are critical to national and regional security.

The Federal Government of Pakistan, in close collaboration with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government and Armed Forces, is working in the newly merged districts to provide basic services, facilitate economic opportunities and contribute to human capacity building.  These jointly prioritized objectives are in line with Pakistan’s Tribal development Decade Strategy for 2020-2030, the mutual goal is to increase stability by delivering development to the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

The KP government is constantly assisted by the federal administration on the reconstruction and rehabilitation of public infrastructure that was damaged by long insurgency in the area.  These mutual investments have improved the governance system and public service delivery for drinking water and sanitation.  Additionally, USAID is also contributing to the KP government to enable sustainable public services in the merged districts by developing a local revenue generation tax collection system.

Various programs are being initiated to support citizen-to-government dialogue on development so that the grievances of people should be heard and addressed. To further build trust and increase cooperation among residents, a pilot project has been jointly initiated by KP government stakeholders, the Armed Forces and the Fata secretariat. Under the Tribal Areas Rural-to-Urban Centers Conversion Initiative (TARUCCI), Fourteen locations in the ex-FATA have been selected to be transformed into urban hubs, aiming to provide the people with better socio-economic and development opportunities.

Besides, the overall literacy rate in the newly merged districts (NMDs) is 28 percent and only eight percent among women. To address the challenge, the government has launched several educational programs aimed to improve the overall education system of schoolchildren and provide scholarships to deserving young men and women to obtain a university education. Conscious raising campaigns are being set up in different districts to create a conducive environment for females to get an education and excel in their areas of interest.

Regional stakeholders in ex-FATA have introduced public inclusive policies of skills development known as (SDP) in order to set out the actions needed to improve the skills and employability of their people. The plan has targeted technical skills development. It will contribute to the socio-economic development of ex-FATA.

In line with the same objectives, the provincial government and Armed Forces as financial and industrial sponsor seeks to provide stability and progress to the region through the instalment of industrial zones. At present five factories and mills are being constructed, while in the Banking and Services Sector four companies function under Army Welfare Trust in NMDs.

The aim of providing training to the tribal communities is to make them self-sufficient, conversant and part of the mainstream economy by transforming them into skilled and adroit manpower for the private sector industry and national institutions. The youth of ex-FATA has been given the opportunity to participate and be advocates of their rights in the social, political and financial institutions of the state and decide the future for their generation.

Jobs

Unemployment and Economic Opportunities For Youth

Unemployment and Economic Opportunities For Youth

By Fatima Faraz

Unemployment of youth remained a high concern of every nation state in the world. This has also remained under the focus of policymakers and strategists during recent decades across the globe and countries are still striving to control youth unemployment. No doubt, this is a global phenomenon but Pakistan being a developing country faces it more severely. Hundreds and thousands of youngsters enter the job industry but only a minute percentage of them are getting formal jobs. This will leave most of the youth unemployed, especially the ones from marginalised regions. A significant section of the unemployed youth adversely affects the economic growth and development of a nation.

Despite positive growth in the youth employment statistics during the last 12 years (9% – according to Statista), a significant chunk of the educated young population is still unemployed. Pakistan Institute of Development Economics research suggests that 24% of educated youth in Pakistan are jobless and this rate is increasing each day. Youth unemployment not only leads to economic instability in terms of profit or loss or decrease in the GDP but also leads to health and psychological issues including mental illness, anxiety, and lack of hope for the future as well.

An increase in population and lack of economic opportunities are major reasons in Pakistan due to which unemployment is increasing day by day leading to poverty and economic instability. Pakistan’s education system, lack of market-required skills and lack of technical education are the other key factors contributing to the unemployment crisis in Pakistan. Recently, the Covid-19 pandemic has also played a significant role in reducing jobs, decrease in economic opportunities and decreasing wages.

Inclusivity has no longer prevailed because mostly the students from low-income families cannot compete in job markets. Because of the lack of opportunities, highly educated youth go to opposite fields to satisfy their financial needs but that decision often harms their already developed skills and their educational qualification due to underutilization in certain areas.

Unemployment not only affects the economic and social life of the youth but also leads the severe physical and psychological health issues among the youth. Due to the blur future prospects and lack of job and economic opportunities, many youngsters lose hope and plunge into the sea of desperation.

If we look into the Newly Merged districts of KP, they are facing the same dilemma as most of the young population of KP and other provinces are going through.  Everything boils down to money and money spent in the right manner can alleviate people from poverty. The economic activities in the merged districts must take a boost so that youth find their rightful place in these efforts. If money is available, tribal youth would wholeheartedly lead the track.

In poor communities, young people cannot afford to be unemployed so they take any work they can get which leads to underemployment. Today, our world is younger than ever before, but if the situation remains the same, countries like Pakistan will fall, and rising economies will topple hence plans to provide more opportunities should be integrated on national and regional levels.

Making money and finding proper opportunities is a skill and our education system and state have to educate our youth along with formal education that how can they acquire this skill. There are tons of opportunities available for moneymaking online but lake of proper guidelines prevents youth from finding those opportunities. Social Media and several digital platforms could be utilised for finding such opportunities. Educated youth should explore freelancing, which is the most grooming field for economic opportunities.

youth development in pakistan

Importance of Youth involvement in decision-making of the Country

Pakistan is considered to be the fifth largest young country in the world. Around 63 percent of the population comprises youth aged between 15-33. This can be the greatest dividend for the country if we are able to capitalize in it. As the country has a larger population of youth , it is hence considered to be mandatory to involve the youth in the decision making for the country .

Every person has their own perspective about a certain thing and in Pakistan as it is a economically developing country, it is necessary to have the facts and figures from the youths perspective because they are the future of the country and the nation’s future in terms of economic, social and political sectors can be stabilized. The youth of the country are very active in different spheres of life but their opinion should be looked up to on different topics that involve the decision making for the country .

Currently , if we look at the situation , most of the decision makers are either higher officials or people of older age . But if the youth is involved it can bring a drastic change that will not only be beneficial for the country but also for the people residing in the country. As the youth digs deep into the whats and hows’ of everything and experience everything beforehand, their opinion can and should matter in the decision making of the country .

If we look at other developed nations, we can come to the conclusion that youth involvement is very important and can be of high value in the future.

climate emergency in pakistan

Declaration of Climate Emergency in Pakistan

Climate change is one of the most important and major problem that Pakistan is facing right now. Thousands of people are affected by the climate crisis in every corner of Pakistan. This crisis in Pakistan is not only a threat to the environment but also a threat to the entire existence of humanity. The melting of glaciers and floods that come almost every year in the northern areas of country directly effects the lives of the people living in that area but on the other hand, it is affecting our economy on a much larger scale. Due to these floods, crops are destroyed which lessen the export of the country. Not only it will affect the export but it will have a huge impact on human health. The health of children is deteriorating because of climate change which leads to severe diseases like cholera, malaria, tuberculosis and most importantly mental health. After all, we know that Climate Change will kill us like a deadly disease if we don’t take firm steps on time. Our government should declare the climate emergency in Pakistan. The Climate Talk has already started in the country but if we are not ready to declare the climate emergency, we should be ready to face its worst consequences.
Sustainable architecture, green energy, investing in renewable energies and divesting from fossils fuels are a few things that Pakistan should focus on to counter this menace.
Pakistan’s government has already started the climate talk both nationally and globally but now its time to implement all the possible measures. The government of Pakistan has already invested in afforestation campaigns like ‘Billion Tree Tsunami’. Seminars and campaigns regarding the climate crisis should be conducted so that the civil society is aware. By declaring the climate emergency in Pakistan, not only the environment of Pakistan will get much better but the GDP may also increase along with exports. Hence, it can be concluded that Declaring the Climate Emergency is the only way out of the crucial problem.