This he stated while addressing the 'National Social Action Projects Showcasing and Award Ceremony 2018' organised by the British Council's Society and Examinations divisions in partnership with the Partner Schools Global Network (PSGN).
The British Council in Pakistan hosted the award ceremony to showcase National Social Action Projects (SAP) by students from 15 schools from Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad under the active citizens' programme.
The education minister said that the government is on the path to progress and expects to increase the DGP growth rate to 6 percent and add around 10,000MW to the national grid by 2018.
He said Pakistan has been gifted with young population which would prove to be a valuable asset for the country. He said that training and education go hand in hand and such programmes should be made part of the curriculum to inculcate skill in the young generation.
"We are proud to have such young students who are aware of their civic responsibilities. It is important that we educate our youth on their civic rights as well. The projects presented by the students show that our future is heading in the right direction," he added.
The minister said Pakistan is actively advancing towards realization of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and will meet the SDGs by 2030.
The social action projects are student-led initiatives that tackle issues related to local communities, ranging from environmental actions to issues of social justice and gender abuse. These projects help develop students' leadership and team building skills and also to enhance their understanding of local issues making them committed to change.
During this programme, over 50 teachers were trained as mentors, further cascading to a cohort of 500 plus students while 60 social action projects were conducted around key themes such as education, health, environment, gender equality.
The active citizens programme trains middle and secondary school students as leaders, influencers and agents of change within their communities through a rigorous 32-hour course work followed by 32 hours of SAP practical implementation. To carry out their projects, student engage with experts to examine their community's greatest challenges, identify their root causes and design active solutions that are sustainable.
Deputy Country Director British Council in Pakistan, James Hampson during the award ceremony expressed his congratulations to all the winning and participating schools. He further added, "We are very pleased to be working directly with the schools, teachers and students to inculcate a sense of community ownership through social action at a young age. These children will take their experience and learning through this programme forward and apply it to tackle challenges in future when they go on to become leaders of tomorrow. We are also looking forward to enrich our partnership with the schools to bring a positive change in learning attitude of the students and help them become socially responsible citizens of the country."
The event provided an open platform for students to interact with education experts and civil society activists. Students and teachers put forward queries and discussed the importance of civic responsibility particularly at the middle and high school level.
Panelists included Arafat Mazhar, Co-founder and Director of Shehri Pakistan, Helen Kamal, Team Lead, ILM IDEAS 2, Shazia Khawar, Regional Director for Society, South Asia, British Council, Qaiser Roonjha, Active Citizen's Lead Facilitator and CEO, WANG, Hasan Khattak, Director Examinations, British Council Pakistan and Uzma Yusuf, Country Director, Cambridge International Examinations.
Through the active citizens' programme, the British Council seeks to build an industrious society by educating young people on civic responsibilities and community leadership through making citizenship education a part of mainstream schooling.