Project launched to boost youth self-employment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province

PESHAWAR: The Information Technology Board of Pakistan’s northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has launched a project titled Durshal to help youths set up their own businesses.
Provincial authorities say it is the first project of its kind in KP. Durshal, Pashto for “gateway,” is aimed at the digital transformation of KP via a network of community spaces to enable youths to launch start-ups, said provincial government officials.
Durshal Project Manager Ismail Shah said it was launched initially in Mardan district and will be extended to six others: Peshawar, Swat, Kohat, Dera Ismail Khan, Abbottabad and Swabi.
“These centers will hopefully prove to be a gateway to knowledge and information technology (IT) skills,” he told Arab News.
It is not possible for the government to provide jobs to all youths completing their university education, but the project will help those with a workable business proposal, he said.
“This will generate employment opportunities for many others if the business idea becomes successful,” Shah added.
The first community innovation lab under the project was launched in Mardan on Feb. 8. The inaugural ceremony was attended by KP’s Education Minister Muhammad Atif and Health and IT Minister Shahram Khan, among others.
Hudaibia Iftikhar, a student at Abdul Wali Khan University in Mardan, said she believes Durshal will promote self-employment in society.
“I wish to launch a news website soon after graduating from the university, because this is an age of online media that can be accessed from any part of the world,” she told Arab News.
Assistant director of projects at the Information Technology Board, Zia-ur-Rehman, said any young graduates with basic IT skills can apply to the project.
“In addition to Durshal, the board also runs the Digital Internship Program, a six-month program for IT students offering a monthly stipend of 14,000 Pakistani rupees ($126.42) to trainees, and a Youth Employment Program for IT professionals, offering further guidance on IT-related tasks and digital skills,” Zia-ur-Rehman told Arab News.