Pakistan’s Youth Faces Severe Job Crisis Amid Skills Shortage

ISLAMABAD: A staggering seven per cent of Pakistan’s youth have access to formal technical and vocational training, significantly lower than the regional average of 22 per cent. The World Bank estimates that this skills gap costs the country approximately $31.5 billion annually in lost productivity and unrealized export potential.

The issue of youth employment is a focal point at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting of Global Future Leaders, which commenced in Dubai on Tuesday. The discussion, titled “How to boost youth employment in Pakistan for the age of AI,” highlights the urgent need to bridge the gap between education and employment in the country.

Among young people aged 15 to 29, nearly one-third are classified as NEET (not in education, employment, or training), with the figure exceeding 50 per cent for young women. This alarming trend underscores the inadequacies in the infrastructure necessary to connect talent with opportunity, including structured mentorship, career guidance, and industry networks.

As the Global Future Leaders convene, the focus will be on developing actionable strategies to enhance youth employability and address the systemic barriers that hinder access to job opportunities. Stakeholders are expected to propose initiatives that could reshape the educational landscape and align it more closely with market demands.