World Youth Skills Day 2025 was marked with a significant announcement from the Government of Punjab, underscoring the province’s commitment to building an inclusive and resilient economy through skills development. The Punjab government has allocated Rs. 26 billion in the fiscal year 2025-26 under the CM Skilled Punjab initiative, positioning technical and vocational training at the center of its economic strategy.

This allocation marks a landmark shift in how Punjab approaches skills development and entrepreneurship. For the first time, the province has consolidated all Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) policy under a newly established Skills Development and Entrepreneurship Department (SDED). This department now houses the Punjab Skills Development Fund (PSDF), Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA), Punjab Vocational Training Council (PVTC), Punjab Skills Development Authority (PSDA), and Punjab Board of Technical Education (PBTE). By uniting these key institutions under one strategic umbrella, Punjab aims to align training programs directly with labour-market demand, ensuring a more coherent and impactful approach.

Over the past 15 years, PSDF has emerged as Pakistan’s largest skills fund and the implementing arm of the CM Skilled Punjab initiative. During this time, it has enabled 600,000 graduates across 250 trades, with women representing 44 percent of participants. The fund has built a strong track record of creating employer-led training pathways that connect learners with high-value opportunities, both locally and abroad.

Among the flagship programs currently under PSDF are:

• PSDF | Tabeer: With an investment of Rs. 2.7 billion, this program focuses on international placement, enabling more than 2,500 young Pakistanis to secure global job opportunities.
  
• PSDF | Mein Digital: Designed to empower rural women, this Rs. 1 billion initiative equips 3,000 educated women from rural areas with digital skills, creating pathways to employment and entrepreneurship in the IT sector.
  
• PSDF | Pehchan: A groundbreaking program for the transgender community, Pehchan allocates Rs. 870 million to provide skill development for 2,250 marginalized individuals, enabling them to access dignified and sustainable livelihoods.
  

Chairperson of the CM Punjab Task Force for Skills Development, Adnan Afzal Chattha, emphasized the significance of this investment, stating, “Punjab’s young people are not just our future. They are our greatest present-day asset. By pairing world-class training with globally recognised certifications and overseas job pathways, we are turning potential into prosperity for families and for Pakistan’s balance of payments.”

He further highlighted that, for the first time in Punjab’s history, all elements of skills development—policy-making, funding, standards, training, and placement—are managed within a single department. This streamlined structure provides “the speed, coherence, and accountability to turn every rupee into real jobs, higher incomes and a workforce that can compete anywhere in the world.”

The announcement comes at a critical time. Across Pakistan, more than 1.7 million new entrants join the labour force each year, yet the country’s 3,000+ technical and vocational institutes can accommodate only about 455,000 students. The gap underscores the urgency of scalable, outcome-driven models like those pioneered by PSDF.

By investing heavily in youth skills and consolidating its TVET ecosystem, Punjab is positioning itself as a hub for human capital development, with the potential to transform not only the provincial economy but also Pakistan’s standing in global labour markets.