KP approves draft Youth Policy 2026, plans Rs7b investment over two years

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi on Monday gave in-principle approval to the provincial Youth Policy 2026 and directed that legislation be enacted to safeguard the interests of young people.
Chairing a meeting of the Sports and Youth Affairs Department, the chief minister said the draft policy would be placed before the provincial cabinet for final approval. He instructed officials to ensure the establishment of _Jawan Markaz_ youth centres in every district of the province, to be run by locally empowered governing bodies.
“The youth make up a large portion of the province’s population, and substantial investment in them is indispensable,” Afridi said, adding that next year’s budget would be a “youth budget” with special focus on providing digital skills.
According to a briefing given at the meeting, more than Rs7 billion will be spent on youth initiatives over the next two years under the policy. The framework rests on four pillars: education, employment, environment, and youth participation in social activities.
Key proposals include universalizing secondary education and expanding access to higher education, particularly for girls, along with scholarships, training programmes, and mobile outreach and youth centres in rural and merged districts. The policy also provides for assistive facilities for youth with disabilities, employment support for transgender youth, and a quota policy for minority youth.
Other measures include aligning technical education curricula with market needs, training in digital skills, creating employment opportunities across sectors, launching youth internship schemes in the public and private sectors, and providing entrepreneurship support.
The policy further envisages the establishment of youth councils at the provincial and district levels, and the creation of youth volunteer groups for community service. Digital transformation, youth-friendly governance, and youth health and welfare are also part of the plan.
The meeting also proposed reactivating the KP Youth Development Commission and setting up a Youth Development Fund.