ISLAMABAD - The first meeting of the National Steering and Coordination Committee of Young Development Fellows Programme was held here under the chairmanship of Prof. Ahsan Iqbal, Federal Minister for Planning Development and Reform.
Outlining the importance of YDF programme, the Minister said. “YDF programme has been carved out with intent to ensure active participation of young professionals in national development as future leaders. It will be a one year programme with built-in stretch/ learning assignments, and will create a pool of 200 young development fellows during next five years, 40 of them to be hired each year. They will be hired through a transparent mechanism on the basis of relevant qualification, experience and skills. The first batch of YDFs comprises of a very talented pool and is very motivated. Our future development depends on harnessing the talents and energies of our youth. 
Two young economists will be sent for PhD in development and economics every year from among young officers of Planning Commission as part of our plans to develop Planning Commission as a development think tank”.
The Secretary Planning, Development and Reform Division, Hassan Nawaz Tarar made a presentation on various aspects of the recruitment process of the young development fellows. Participants of the meeting including representative  of Finance Division said that the schemes was a wonderful idea and will prove to be a source of great benefit for the country. The members recommended that the scope of the programme should be expanded, so that other ministries could also benefit.
Director General Ministry of Finance remarked, “It is worthwhile to note that all the 120 Persons short-listed for the programme enjoy outstanding credentials, which shows confidence of intelligentsia in the leadership of Planning Commission.
Rector National University of Science and Technology (NUST) said, “NUST provided free of charge service as an independent third party for short listing the candidates for this programme. Dean National School of Public Policy (NSPP) was of the view, “The selection process is transparent, fair and worth appreciation”. Vice Chancellor PIDE stated, “The young fellows should be retained even after the completion of one year tenure”.
The committee approved the selection of YDFs and appreciated the quality of selected fellows.