By Faiza Tehseen ISLAMABAD, Feb 24 (INP-WealthPK): The Government of Pakistan has framed many initiatives to boost the country’s economy. The most important one is to make the youth self-dependent. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are also given special attention to improve themselves in many ways i.e., financial and work assets support, improving skills levels, and better motivation. To help the government in all the said sectors, Small and Medium Enterprises Authority (SMEDA) is playing a vital role. SMEDA coordinates with SMEs in different ways from financing to training according to its listed traits. For further growth of business to meet international standards, SMEDA also helps SMEs to get multiple types of international certification e.g., UL (Underwriter’s Laboratories), CE (Conformite Europeenne), DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung e.V.), JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard), ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), and KS (Korea Testing and Research Institute). Recently, SMEDA launched several strategic programmes to train the youth on entrepreneurship, motivation and skills development under the title of “Kamyab Jawan program” worth Rs100 billion. A large number of youths have been attracted by the programs, a positive sign for the socio-economic development of Pakistan in the years to come. It is a first ever comprehensive National Youth Development Framework (NYDF) which identifies three critical youth-centred priority areas: Gainful employment, quality education and meaningful engagement. Kamyab Jawan program is a special initiative which focuses upon 3 Es: education, employment and engagement. SMEDA is the government’s official partner to conduct seminars, training programs and workshops etc. By attending all the said events, the youth can get inspiration to be economically self-sufficient. But all the training and motivation framework is disturbed when funding from responsible institutions is not released in time and candidates have to wait for a long span of time. After getting disappointed, most of the people, especially those from rural areas, switch to other plans or occupations. Concerning the said issue, an official from SMEDA regional office Mr. Mohsin told INP-WealthPK that they try to keep training programs in a best possible short span because mostly of the people try to avoid long training sessions. He said SMEDA motivates people with the best tools and techniques. He said people get encouragement and motivation to become self-dependent and to help other people as well who are interested in seeking better socio-economic opportunities. Educated youths get training, motivation and skills, while less or uneducated people get training according to their traits or they only attend motivation sessions and after that they mostly apply for loans. To a large extent, loans help them expand their existing business or to make a new start. Application for a convenient sized loan is the first step towards self-reliance. The SMEDA official said that the applications are mostly rejected by the concerned bank and people who get training from SMEDA centres become disappointed and complain that they do not have enough resources to pursue their applications in the head office of the concerned bank that are mostly situated in Karachi or other far-off cities. Another problem is about the slow response to an applicant’s multiple queries. The SMEDA official said a large number of applications about attending any training or motivational session are dispatched to their offices on a daily basis. But due to a lack of timely response, their morale gets down and they lose hope. The official said the problem is even graver for women, especially those from rural or backward areas, as they had to do a lot to get permission from their families to attend such sessions due to cultural and other impediments. The official said that if a special section with sufficient staff is established to sort out and respond to applications, it would become more convenient and time saving. The situation about the loan cases can be improved for persons trained or motivated in their centres by making the concerned regional centre help them document and file their loan applications. It is manageable for regional centres because they can get sufficient information concerning the identity, true need and other necessities important for loan issuance. Regional offices can act as a bridge between banks and loan applicants. It will make the operation easy and accessible for those who are not familiar with the documentation process due to a lack of education. A special section can be established in every regional and sub-regional office for better access and convenience of people. One-window operation can be the best solution to all the said operations.