Daily Times

As part of the TVET Sector Support Programme (SSP) to facilitate reintegration of overseas returnees, as many as 90 Pakistani returnees and locals, including more than 50 women, received sewing kits and electrician kits as in-kind support at a ceremony here on Thursday.

The TVET SSP is facilitating the reintegration of returnees under its new component ‘Reintegration of Returnees in Pakistan’, which is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). In her remarks on the occasion, Head of TVET SSP Iris Cordelia Rotzoll opined, “for any economy to thrive, it is pivotal to promote self-employment and entrepreneurship in the informal sector. The reintegration component of TVET SSP is now also enabling the returnees and locals to become economical stable and fashion a sustainable future for their communities.” The TVET SSP is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbHin partnership with the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC), in close collaboration with the provincial Technical Education and Vocational Training Authorities (TEVTAs) and several not-for-profit, public, and private sector organisations while it is funded by the European Union, Germany, and Norwegian Embassy.

Under this initiative, the beneficiaries were imparted training during a two-day workshop on Career & Entrepreneurship Advisory prior to the in-kind support handover ceremony. Men and women from Punjab and KP, who participated in the workshop, will now be able to start their own businesses upon their return to their hometowns. Kinza Ejaz, a returnee from Saudi Arabia, plans to work from home as a tailor for her local community in Gujrat. “It is not easy to return to Pakistan from abroad and restart from scratch. It is a big relief to see support measures being offered for returnees from Germany & GCC countries. We are all hopeful that the toolkits we receive today, will help us become financially stable and independent in the future,” Kinza said. The ‘Reintegration of Returnees in Pakistan’ component of TVET SSP, aims to facilitate the socio-economic development of Pakistani returnees and the locals by offering them quick and effective start-up opportunities, especially in Punjab. The component will support 15,000 individuals, including 6,500 returnees from Germany and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries through various support measures including Career and Entrepreneurship Advisory Services, Competency-based Training & Assessments (CBT&A), Recognition of Prior Learning, and Employment Promotion.