Islamabad

National Assembly Speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza, has said the future of the country rests in hands of youth and the youngsters have all the potential and abilities to combat the challenges confronted by the nation to steer the county to future glory. She expressed these views in her message on International Youth Day being commemorated across the World on Thursday.

Fehmida said that youth of the country always played a vital role in nation building and natural calamities. She said at present, the country is passing through hard times, and large part of the country submerged in flood water, millions of people have been displaced and compelled to live in tents, thousands lost their lives, and million acres of cultivated land have been ruined due to ever-worst flood in the country. Speaker said that government was striving hard to provide all possible assistance to flood victims, however, devastation caused by recent floods were beyond the government capacity and need collective efforts. She urged upon the Youth to come forward and zealously participate in relief and rehabilitation activities. She said that nation has lot of expectations from its youth and they should equipped themselves of modern time technology and work hard to coup with challenges confronted to the country and to come up the expectations of the nation. Fehmida said the objectives behind the celebration of International Youth Day were to recognize the contributions of the youth in society’s development and to engage them in constructive activities. She said that this day provide us an opportunity to draw the attention of the world towards the youth issues.

The Speaker said that provision of quality education, proper training and research facility to youth of the county was top most priority of the present democratic set up and substantial funds have been allocated in current fiscal budget in that regard. She said that to address youth issues the government is going to introduce a youth policy, which will be announced soon.

She said that the government also taking keen interest to provide equal education opportunity to the youth of rural areas of the county and for this purpose huge resources have been mobilized for the construction of educational institutions, for establishment of libraries, recruitment of teaching staff and other necessary infrastructure in the rural areas of the country. The Speaker said that democracy is the only way to guarantee our stability and to ensure our economic and social progress. She called upon the youth of the country to come forward and join hand for strengthening democratic institutions in the country and continuity of the democracy. She appreciated the role of the students in relief and rescue activities in flood affected areas and asked them to establish relief camps for collection of aid for the flood victims.