Cabinet okays jobs for 30,000 more youths

The cabinet yesterday approved a proposal of the Ministry of Youths and Sports to expand the National Service Programme (NSP) in 20 upazilas to create jobs for 30,000 unemployed youths.

A total of 1,500 youths will get training in each of the 20 upazilas and then will be employed, Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told reporters after the cabinet meeting at Bangladesh Secretariat.

They will be selected on the basis of their poverty level classified by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) for the 2015-2016 fiscal year, he said.

Under the programme, people between the ages of 18 and 35 will be trained for three months with Tk 100 as daily allowance and then be appointed temporarily in different government organisations for two years with the daily payment of Tk 200.

The government launched NSP in 2010 in 19 upazilas of Kurigram, Barguna and Gopalganj in line with its election pledge to provide the educated youths with jobs for two years after three months' training.

In 2012, it was expanded to eight upazilas under seven districts of Rangpur division and later to 17 upazilas of 17 districts.

At the meeting, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina directed the government officials to work more sincerely to implement the administration's decisions and policies as soon as possible.

She also expressed satisfaction over the progress of activities of the ministries and divisions when an annual report was placed at the meeting.

The PM thanked Musharraf for performing his job as the cabinet secretary sincerely in the last few years and wished him success in the future.

Musharraf has been appointed the alternate executive director at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, while Senior Land Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam will join as the new cabinet secretary on October 29.