LAHORE (special crosspondent) – President of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol has stressed the urgent need to equip Pakistan’s youthful population with market-oriented skills, entrepreneurship opportunities, and professional career guidance. Asserting that the nation’s youth represent its most valuable economic asset, he emphasized that they must be effectively integrated into the mainstream economy to drive sustainable development.

He was addressing an awareness session titled “Career Pathways and Entrepreneurship Skills,” hosted at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry, which featured a detailed presentation on the Tadbeer Portal. The initiative aims to bridge the gap between education and industrial requirements, a theme often echoed in discussions regarding digital skills for Pakistani students.

Strategic Vision for Youth Integration

The session saw the participation of President of the Saleemah Khanum Foundation and Tadbeer Portal Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, former Vice Chancellor of Lahore College for Women University Prof. Dr. Farhat Saleemi, LCCI Standing Committee Convener Shamim Akhter, former World Bank Consultant Muhammad Saeed Akhter, and various representatives from civil society. Other notable attendees included Umaima Saleem, Ayesha Zulfiqar, Maida Afzal, Umar Rafi, and Syeda Rozi Rizvi.

Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol remarked that while Pakistan is endowed with enormous natural resources—including fertile land, tourism potential, and mineral wealth—the country has yet to fully harness these advantages for sustained economic growth. He highlighted that approximately 65 percent of the nation’s population consists of youth. “If we can properly streamline, train, and utilize our young population, it can become the strongest engine of economic growth,” Saigol added.

Mentorship and Modern Technology

The LCCI President lauded the Saleemah Khanum Foundation for developing the Tadbeer Portal, describing it as a vital tool to assist young entrepreneurs and startups. He further noted that the business community holds a responsibility to provide direction to the younger generation. Drawing on his experience as a third-generation businessperson, he urged senior members to help young professionals identify viable market opportunities.

Saigol specifically encouraged the youth to embrace e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and digital platforms. He pointed out that these technologies have created unprecedented career paths that were unavailable to previous generations, similar to the focus on global trade cooperation seen in recent initiatives like Pakistan-South Korea trade agreements.

The Role of Tadbeer Portal

Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, speaking at the event, noted that his association with the Lahore Chamber dates back to the 1970s. He emphasized that trade bodies must evolve to become centers of learning and mentorship rather than just platforms for protecting commercial interests.

“Tadbeer Portal was developed to address the critical shortage of reliable and unbiased career guidance,” Zia-ul-Haq explained. He warned that the absence of such guidance often leads young Pakistanis to waste resources on inadequate education or, worse, fall victim to human trafficking networks. He emphasized that the philosophy of the project is to foster self-reliance, a goal essential for the long-term prosperity of the country’s business ecosystem as discussed in various industry leadership forums.