PSDF, BISP partner to equip vulnerable youth with skills and employment opportunities

LAHORE -- Punjab Skills Development Fund (PSDF) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), Pakistan's premier social safety net organization, to include BISP beneficiaries into PSDF's ongoing and upcoming skills training programmes across Punjab. 

The agreement was signed by Ahmed Khan, CEO, PSDF, and Adeela Bokhari, Director General, Complimentary initiatives, BISP. The MoU formalizes a collaborative framework through which BISP will nominate eligible beneficiaries and their family members for enrolment in PSDF's industry-aligned vocational training programmes at no cost to the trainees or to BISP. 

Under the partnership, BISP will use its National Socio-Economic Registry (NSER), digital portal, and local offices to identify, mobilize, and biometrically verify eligible candidates in Punjab, while PSDF reserves dedicated training quotas for BISP-nominated beneficiaries.

This will cover the costs, materials, and stipends. Upon completion, graduates will earn co-branded certificates recognized by NAVTTC and aligned with HEC's framework to boost domestic and overseas employment prospects, supported by periodic progress and outcome reporting from PSDF to ensure transparency and accountability.  

"Pakistan's social protection system and its skills development system have historically operated in parallel, reaching different people through different institutions. By connecting BISP's reach into vulnerable households with PSDF's training infrastructure, we are creating a pathway that moves beneficiaries from dependency to economic participation," said Ahmed Khan, CEO, PSDF.  

The partnership directly addresses one of the most persistent structural gaps in Pakistan's development architecture: the absence of a coordinated pathway from social protection to productive employment.  

"BISP's Benazir Hunarmand Programme already focuses on the technical uplift of youth. Through this partnership, we are opening doors for our beneficiaries especially women and their families to move beyond training into entrepreneurship, dignified employment, and financial independence," stated Adeela Bokhari Director General, Complimentary initiatives, BISP. 

The collaboration bridges social protection and skills development, uniting BISP’s nationwide reach with PSDF’s industry-aligned training infrastructure to transform social assistance into long-term economic empowerment and sustainable employment.