Islamabad, May 27, 2025 – The European Union funded “Power to the Youth (PTY)” project concluded with a National Youth Conference and closing ceremony at the Girl Guides Association Headquarters in Islamabad. Organized by Shirakat – Partnership for Development, in collaboration with the Norwegian Church Aid (NCA), Civil Society Support Program (CSSP) and Rozan, the event celebrated the project’s achievements brought together young people, community leaders, policy makers and civil society to reflect on its impact and legacy.
Since its launch in January 2021, the EU-funded project has empowered nearly 6000 young people from five districts— Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Mirpur Khas, and Sanghar— with a special focus on marginalised groups. Over 50%of the participants were females, and 95 transgender individuals were trained to become agents of change within their communities to address local developmental and governance challenges. For their economic empowerment,7000youth (61%females, including 100 survivors of gender based violence, 20 transgender,), were given up to 3-month high-in-demand marketable vocational skills trainings.
The closing event began with a warm welcome from Ms. BilquisTahira, Executive Director, Shirakat – Partnership for Development. She shared the contributions of all project stakeholders and the amazing journey of the youth beneficiaries. This was followed by different session where the project beneficiaries shared how different components benefited them. At the end, the Youth Charter of Demand was unveiled which provided aspirations of youth in terms of social and economic empowerment Ms. Gulmeena Bilal Chairperson NAVTTC spoke on the importance of youth engagement and highlighted Government’s commitment to youth development initiatives.
In the afternoon, while leading the closing ceremony, the NCA Country Director, Mr. Stephen Kent, highlighted how the project empowered youth as agents of change. Mr. Jeroen Willems, Head of Cooperation, EU Delegation to Pakistan, acknowledged youth’s efforts and achievements and reiterated the EU’s commitment to promote inclusive youth development and governance initiatives in Pakistan.
The day concluded with an awards ceremony to recognize outstanding contributions of stake holders followed by group photo of participants with youth beneficiaries.
About the project: The EU-funded PTY project was initiated in response to address developmental and governance challenges exacerbated by COVID-19, ultimately empowering hundreds of young people, as well as local CSOs, through capacity building, economic initiatives, and civic engagement strategies.
