policy for strengthening volunteering activities to support peace and development process in a sustainable manner.
The minister, UN resident coordinator, secretaries, MPAs and other participants endorsed the need of the volunteer policy in Punjab and forming Volunteer Network in Punjab.
Michael Jones stressed that the policy support from the government mechanism was crucial and importantly determinant for strengthening volunteering activities in Pakistan.
Besides lawmakers and senior government officials, civil society, NGOs/CSOs, academia, corporate sectors, media and youth organisations and UN agencies took part in the consultation which formed the Punjab Volunteer Working Group who would be responsible for drafting a policy on volunteerism and volunteer network.
The UN resident coordinator said the policy support paved to create overall conducive environment for engaging all potentials stakeholders in boosting volunteerism efforts as well as for volunteers. He said legal support could come across from different forms either developing a policy, a framework law, or in amendments to laws and policies that generate broader perspectives for intensifying the volunteering initiatives and protect constrains/challenges towards volunteering. He said that the policy support provides substantive guidance and protection which leads to advance volunteering works to contribute peace and development process in the country. It also protects the volunteers, who serve greatly in different critical situations like disasters and emergencies along with other difficult engagement.
books: Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has provided colourful books to the students enrolled in the evening schooling project of Punjab Education Foundation (PEF).
The books distribution ceremony was held at PEF head office on Monday with Managing Director Dr Aneela Salman in the chair. Project Coordinator JICA Abid Gill, besides PEF-DMD Salman Anwar Malik, Programme Directors Aisha Nauman and Samina Nawaz was also present.
Addressing the ceremony, Dr Aneela Salman said evening schooling project was a pilot programme for child labourers, housemaids and other out-of school-children who could not study in the morning due to their peculiar circumstances.
In order to meet their educational needs, 104 partner schools have been set up in collaboration with the private partners in Lahore and Multan in the first phase where 5,000 children are enrolled.
Abid Gill paid rich tributes to the beneficial role of the PEF in the field of school education and disclosed that PEF sponsored Public Private Partnership models were studied and replicated in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces to meet their respective educational needs. He hoped that evening schooling project would emerge as a prime example of success while the students would become part of mainstream through education.