Cabinet approves skills development initiative for enhanced training

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Cabinet, on Tuesday, approved the establishment of the “Prime Minister’s Skills Development Company” to generate and manage funds for technical and vocational training and to implement various training programs.

The Federal Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad, approved the establishment of the company under the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission, as per Section 42 of the Companies Act, 2017. This decision followed a recommendation from the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training.

In accordance with the prime minister’s directive, the company was established to delineate the operational and regulatory responsibilities of the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission.

After this, the Prime Minister’s Skill Development Company will look after the operational issues of technical and vocational training while the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission will look after the regulatory issues.

The federal cabinet authorized the transfer of operations for the King Hamad University of Nursing and Associated Medical Sciences to the National University of Medical Sciences. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) will be signed between the Ministry of National Health Services and the Ministry of Defense to formalize this agreement.

The Federal Cabinet ratified the decisions from the Cabinet Committee on Government-Owned Institutions meeting held on August 12, 2024. Additionally, the Cabinet has endorsed the decisions from the Economic Coordination Committee meeting on August 15, 2024.

The Cabinet was updated on the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in the Mubarak Sani case. It was informed that, following the prime minister’s directive, an additional petition related to the Mubarak Sani case was filed with the Supreme Court of Pakistan on August 17, 2024.

The Cabinet was also informed that the National Assembly held an in-depth discussion on this case, and it has been referred to the Standing Committee on Law and Justice for further consideration.

In the meeting of the Standing Committee on Law and Justice of the National Assembly, the government and the opposition parties unanimously decided that the National Assembly would inform the federal government about the factual and legal aspects of the case, along with the scholars’ opinions. It was also agreed that an application should be submitted on behalf of the government.

In this context, there was a telephonic conversation between the prime minister and the Speaker of the National Assembly. Following this discussion, an additional petition was filed with the Supreme Court on behalf of the government, in accordance with the prime minister’s instructions. The prime minister has directed that the Attorney General, accompanied by his team, will present arguments based on the opinions of the religious scholars and the Standing Committee on Law and Justice of the National Assembly during the hearing of the additional petition on August 22, 2024. The Prime Minister has issued explicit instructions regarding this matter.

The Federal Cabinet has approved the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Ministry of Investment, Industry, and Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Commerce of Pakistan. This MoU, aimed at promoting cooperation in the field of electronic commerce (e-commerce), was endorsed based on the recommendation of the Ministry of Commerce.