Daily Times

Terming the start of fully equipped Centre of Excellence of National Vocational & Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC), Islamabad, a milestone achievement, Federal Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mehmood has said that the country direly needs skilled youth as it would play a significant role in creating job opportunities as well as national prosperity.

The minister expressed these views while inaugurating the NAVTEC Centre of Excellence (CoE), Islamabad, which has recently been upgraded with all state-of-the-art facilities. He said that Pakistan needs to also grab more jobs share in the international labour market and we can achieve this goal through provision more and more skills training facilities across the country.

He said this Centre would facilitate in training of trainers and trainees for the modern technologies and skills to compete in the national and international labour mark. The event was attended by Additional Federal Secretary Education and Professional Training, private sector representatives, relevant TVET bodies, teachers and students.

The upgradation of this Centre is supported the TVET Sector Support Programme (ssp) which is funded by the European Union, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in close collaboration with NAVTTC, Technical Education and Vocational Training Authorities (TEVTAs) and a number of public and private sector organizations at national and provincial levels. The TVET SSP is supporting the establishment of five Centres of Excellence across the country.

Speaking at the ceremony, Cluster Head for Training and Sustainable Growth for Decent Jobs GIZ Pakistan, Mr. Olaf Handloegten, appreciated this initiative and hoped that the NAVTTC management will take advantage of the upgraded training facilities for both TVET teachers and trainees and devise mechanisms to ensure that this CoE lives up to its full potential. “Now it’s time for NAVTTC and the private sector to ensure sustainability of these efforts and achievements,” he maintained.

Earlier, in the opening remarks, Chairman NAVTTC Syed Javed Hassan said, “We are overjoyed that the CoE in Islamabad is now complete and being turned over to the NAVTTC to set an example for all of Pakistanis in providing outstanding training to instructors and trainees.”

The NAVTTC CoE with modern technologies seeks to foster excellence in training delivery for youth and TVET practitioners. The initiative will assist in the building up of a competent workforce with better job opportunities.

In total, five CoEs are to be established through up-gradation from which one has been completed last year in Peshawar and others are in Lahore, Kotri and Hub. These CoEs will provide a cascading model of teachers training, upscaling of skills for trainees, modern lab facilities, and career counselling and job placement services under the one roof.

The NAVTTC CoE in Islamabad is the second Centre of Excellence to achieve accomplishment. The institute was established in 1976 with the aim to provide quality technical training to Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) teachers, including Mandatory Teachers Training. Upgraded to Centre of Excellence and supported by state-of-art facilities, the CoE faculty is now to drive forward continuous professional development of teachers while offering high quality courses for students.