Int’l Volunteer Day: Youth urged to become peacemakers

MARDAN: Speakers at a seminar on Monday asked the youth volunteers to play a role as peacemakers for the promotion of tolerance and harmony in society.

The Department of Sociology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan (AWKUM) and the National Commission for Human Development (NCHD) Mardan, had organized the seminar to mark International Volunteer Day.

Chairperson of Sociology Dr Hussain Ali said that the youth should come forward as volunteers and become the agent of peace to promote tolerance, social cohesion and harmony among different ethnic groups in the country.

Junaid Khalid, Assistant Commissioner Headquarters Mardan, Prof Dr Zahir Shah ,Dean Faculty of Social Sciences, AWKUM, Syed Rashid Ali, Associate Professor of Sociology, AWKUM, Lal Mohammad, Deputy Director, NCHD, Usman Ali, District Youth Officer, Arif Ali, President ,Saiban Welfare Organization, Jahanzeb Salek, President Salek Foundation, Jamal Shah, District Social Welfare Officer Mardan and others spoke on the occasion.

Lal Mohammad said that NCHD had been working for 20 years to mobilize youth as volunteers in the district.He said that the media played a vital role in highlighting the best volunteer practices of youth in society to promote harmony.

Prof Dr Zahir Shah said the government should start a capacity-building programme on volunteerism to mobilize university students to help bring about a positive change in society.At the end of the seminar, certificates and shields were distributed among the best youth volunteers and guest speakers.