Holding an electric arc in his right hand, and a steel and glass helmet in front of his face with his left, Najeeb Ahmed bears down on a sheet of metal, focusing intensely as he heats a straight line across a forge under the watchful eye of an experienced ironworker.

Like millions of young Pakistanis, the 30-year-old Najeeb is ambitious and eager to work yet is nonetheless unemployed. Becoming a welder may be his last chance to provide a good life for his family of six. Previously, he had eked out a meager living as a clerk in a garment shop until even that fell through because of the business's poor sales.

"The future looked very bleak," Najeeb said, wiping his brow after removing his mask. "It's only been a few days of the training and I already feel skilled to take on a job. Just a short time ago, I wasn't sure how I was going to feed my family."

Najeeb is among thousands of young Pakistanis caught in the long-standing gap between job skills the business sector requires for growth and the standard training that young men and women receive in the Pakistani education and vocational system. Ironically, the country simultaneously has a critical need for qualified workers while unemployment remains alarmingly high.

When Najeeb learned that he met the criteria for the welding training supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), he immediately registered with the Training Institute in Multan. He joined 24 other apprentices at this training center, where they learned to manufacture materials ranging from window bars to farm tools.

The training focuses on teaching two types of welding methods in high demand in Pakistan: gas metal and shielding metal arc welding. The six-month training program will empower youth with a skill demanded by employers and will facilitate their placement in Multan factories that specialize in manufacturing agricultural implements.

Welders attending this training institute are part of a USAID program that connects jobseekers with employers through linkages that join skills demanded by local businesses with targeted training.

From the business owners' perspective, this program provides substantial benefits as well. Participating employers have committed to hiring 25 newly-trained youth into their companies. The welding students are a part of the first 100 trainings being conducted by a USAID project called JOBS in sectors such as Agriculture, Energy, Fisheries and Textiles. These trainings will help less-educated young adults to specialize in the particular needs of an industry and ultimately provide them opportunities for stable sources of income.

The project seeks to facilitate the placement of 100,000 Pakistanis - at least half women - in skill-matched jobs through training and placement centers that establish linkages with the businesses, complementing other USAID programs such as education, health, and economic growth initiatives.

"As soon as I completed my training, I started receiving a salary which was enough to meet our everyday living costs," Najeeb said later. "I've always dreamed of having a brighter future for my children, and with USAID's support, I can see that happening."