KU seminar highlights importance of building life skills in youth

A seminar on building life skills in youth a Local Challenge Fund by the Higher Education Commission Pakistan, and supported by the World Bank, was organized by the Institute of Clinical Psychology in collaboration with the KU Office of Research, Innovations and Commercialization at the KU Chinese Teachers Memorial Auditorium on Tuesday.

The objectives of the event were to highlight the role of youth in the prevention of substance use and mental health problems in the community, to develop knowledge, healthy skills, and abilities to face difficult situations in their lives, address myths related to substance use and mental health problems and to build self-confidence, communication skills and pro-social behaviors to cope with difficult situation in young people to enable their positive development, and developing an educational climate, environment policies, which support health-promoting behaviors of youth.

The KU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Khalid Mahmood Iraqi during his address said that before we talk about the world, we need to see how much corruption is there in our society, how much truth we speak, and how much this system promotes merit. He observed that we have to prove through our actions that we are better Muslims, and then we invite the world to Islam.

He mentioned that without improving our basic education system in the country, we cannot produce good people and prepare them better. We need to improve our basic education system to compete with the world. We need to make our society safe and inclusive.

The KU VC Professor Dr Khalid Iraqi expressed that legislation regarding drugs and other things is insufficient. Parents play a key role in raising children, and they should keep a good eye on the child’s social circle and friends. He said that self-confidence and knowledge are essential for a good citizen.

A wellness counselor at Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology Dr Muzaffar Ali said that addiction is a chronic relapsing mental illness. If we continue to call it only a social evil and a bad habit, we will never go towards its treatment. He mentioned that research shows that pan, betel nuts, and other stuff are also harmful like drugs. Most people think that they can stop using drugs at any time, but the facts are against it because a person can start using drugs at will but cannot give up on his/her own.

He added that sleeping pill users often increase their medication because they become addicted to it. Dr Ali shared that drug use does not reduce stress, but increases it. According to him, research has found that 36 percent of drug addict people are facing mental illness and people suffering from mental illness can turn to drug abuse. We tell our children to always speak truth but we lie in front of them, which sends a double message to children and does not have positive effects on them.

Anchorperson Rizwan Jafar said that we need to do more and move forward instead of paying attention to the criticism of others. No one can stop people with abilities from moving forward. The reason why the world is ahead of us is humanity and justice.

He said that we need to establish a society based on equality and truth. Earlier people were against elites but unfortunately today we want to become elites and are not against elites. We need to find ourselves and recognize our abilities.

A behavioral health specialist at the Department of Family Medicine of the Aga Khan University Hospital Dr Hira Mukhtar said that 16 percent of the world’s population, while more than fifty percent of Pakistan’s population consists of people aged 30 years or less, we need this young generation to meet their needs.

She mentioned that appropriate opportunities have to be provided so that they can play a positive and key role in the development of society. Every human being faces stress and struggle in his life, emotions cannot be stopped but they can be managed. Problems are always there and they can be solved if you separate them from yourself.

The KU Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Professor Dr Shaista Tabasim said that one of the main reasons for the increase in drug use is lack of awareness. She mentioned that a large number of illiterate and uneducated people are suffering from addiction as they do not have proper knowledge about the aftermaths of drug use.

The KU Dean of the Faculty of Sciences Professor Dr Masarrat Jahan Yousuf expressed that instead of going abroad, our youth should use their talents in their own country and work for the development of this country.

The Director of KU ORIC Dr Syeda Hoor-Ul-Ain said that we need to bring a paradigm shift in the mindsets of the youth of the entire Pakistan. We need to discuss the paradoxical uncertainty of youth developers and youth well-being at every level to resolve this alarming issue.

“Why do we say that it’s a paradoxical incertitude in Pakistan? That means that our institutions, our universities, and our academic and I must say all school systems have failed to develop a proper and healthy mind who can become a good leader for the next generation.”

She asked youngsters to avoid substance use and believe in themselves because they can create things that others cannot do. One time you will fail to convince the other person. The other day, you will definitely be able to.

Earlier, the Principal Investigator of the Local Challenge Fund Project, and a KU ICP faculty member Professor Dr Salman Shahzad briefed the audience in detail about the project and presented the project’s progress report, and the KU ICP Director Professor Dr Uzma Ali, another faculty member Professor Dr Sobia Aftab, Dr Hina Imran also spoke on this occasion.