ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Youth Affairs Usman Dar on Tuesday said the government has approved Rs39 billion for the Kamyab Jawan Business Loans Programme to benefit around 25,700 youth who have qualified for the soft loans.

In a press conference, the SAPM urged the youth engaged with media industry to become part of Kamyab Jawan Programme (KJP) to apply for soft loans to establish their own businesses with a kick start amount.

Mr Dar said under the programme over 2,000 tractors were distributed among the farmers with the aim to boost the sector.

The scheme would be expanded to 10,000 tractors in the first phase, he added. The SAPM said the government has allocated Rs100bn for the disbursement of soft loans under the programme and was distributing Rs3-4bn per month to around 3,000 young entrepreneurs which would be expanded to Rs8-10bn.

He said that in the third phase of Skills for All (Hunarmand Pakistan) scholarships programme, over 400,000 have applied whereas around 60,000 would be provided scholarships for various courses in traditional and high-tech trades.

He said the federal government has supported the youth of Sindh and allocated 13,000 skills scholarships for them that has exceeded to 35,000 whereas as soft loans worth Rs8bn had been disbursed among the qualifying youth.

“We want sports to become a part of the national economy, so that it may attract and provide jobs to the youth in this sector,” Mr Dar said.