LAHORE - On 1st September 2022, Punjab Skills Development Fund (PSDF) and Koh e Suleman Improvement Project (KSIP) organized a contract ceremony for funding of 2,400+ trainees in 23 specialized trades. PSDF will fund skill trainings for residents of Tehsil Koh e Suleman, DG Khan and De-excluded area of Rajanpur. These areas comprise primarily of tribal communities with low literacy levels and until now have had limited opportunities for personal and economic development. During the first phase of this project, 2,400+ residents will receive 1.5 to 3 months trainings in Adda Work, Amazon Virtual Assistant, Civil Surveyor, Computer Applications, Domestic Electrician, Dozer Operator, Dress Design & Tailoring, Excavator Operator, Hand Embroidery, Heavy Transport Vehicle Driving, Livestock Management, Mason, Mobile Phone Repairing, Motorcycle Mechanic, Plumber & Sanitary Installer, Safety inspector, Solar Technician, Virtual Accounting & Bookkeeping, Welder, Artificial Insemination (Assistant),Village Veterinary Worker, Farm Management and Animal Nutrition Management. PSDF in these first of kind trainings will use its skill expertise to equip residents with market-relevant professional knowledge to commence their skill development. To mobilize this project, training centres will be established in the tribal areas of Koh e Suleman, DG Khan and de-excluded area of RajanpurMonthly stipend of Rs 3,500 will also be provided to the trainees to facilitate their learning journey. During the contract signing ceremony, Maqbool Ahmed (Project Director, KSIP) remarked, “This is the first step in building a new future for the youth. Government of Punjab and PSDF aims to optimize resources for the progress of our trainees, ensuring them economically sustainable future”. On this occasion Ali Akbar Bosan, COO PSDF, said “PSDF strongly believes that everyone deserves an access to quality skills training. And we are proud to present special skills training under KSIP, focusing on soft skills competencies to develop all necessary skills to make our youth marketable candidates and equipping them with all the new age tools to be successful in all walks of the life”.