This programme builds peace by encouraging youth to cooperate for common good in the campuses. Started in 2003, it is a pioneering effort to launch youth track of peacebuilding in Pakistan and the South Asia. 35 universities and higher education institutions in Pakistan, three universities of India and two of Afghanistan have collaborated with this programme. More than 8000 students, faculty members and engaged citizens have been direct beneficiaries of this programme. Moreover, over 40,000 persons, predominantly students, have been the recipients of different publications. An annual “Regional Peace and Youth Cooperation Dialogue” is the flagship event of this programme, which is dedicated to a dedicated theme of the year.

Since 2007, the organization has been pursuing pro-peace, women-friendly and education-oriented campus politics. In this regards, largest consultative process was initiated with the ordinary students vice-chancellors, university administrators, and student and political leaders from around the country, researchers and experts on gender, peace and youth policy have been taken on board.

This programme offers youth to develop their communication, cooperative, management and leadership skills. This is done by rights-based and personal skills training, and by volunteer work and internships for various on-going projects of BARGAD.

The organization has been a principal force to groom hundreds of youth, especially the female, and provided them with confidence and willingness to prepare for their future roles and even to confront sensitive issues like street harassment, gender equality, domestic violence, and equal opportunities. Youth have learnt how to manage events, plan campaigns and projects, coordinate activities, conduct social research, develop thematic posters, stage theatre plays and implement other activities. The skills imparted by the organization have also been culminated into establishment of two Youth Resource Centre run by the BARGAD’s alumni in Gujranwala and placement to various professional positions in practical life i.e. non-profit management, academia and research, marketing, and media.

This programme is meant to inculcate social activism and collective spriits among youth. BARGAD is a hub for youth advocacy in Gujranwala and home base for youth volunteers to run public campaigns and mass awareness and education. Every year, thousands of youth are conveyed sustained messages of BARGAD in an organized form on aspects of its focused themes (peace, gender and democracy). During only one such example in a span of two months before the 2008 elections, BARGAD’s young volunteers could hold more than 180 community meetings in which more than 30,000 people were educated on their voting rights and obligations.

Mega events like the Gujranwala Job Festival and annual public events like the commemoration of International Youth Day, Women’s Day and 16 Days of Activism are big public shows organized by young volunteers and widely covered by both electronic and print media. TV talk shows and FM radio discussions are other ways to involve public in youth issues: the best thing about these programmes is that in these events youth themselves are on the discussion panels to represent a youth perspective.

In the absence of scarce body of knowledge, BARGAD’s research and publications on youth serve as the prime resource on Pakistani youth. This material includes research studies, project and seminar reports and dialogue proceedings, handbooks, manuals, brochures and posters and magazines. These are regularly disseminated to the students, volunteers, educational institutions, civil society organizations, policy makers and other stakeholders.

BARGAD also publishes a magazine which releases a special no. on dedicated theme on quarterly and bi-annual bases.

BARGAD’s book on youth policy and two special volumes of the magazine on national education policies make a reference reading that have been prepared to review and implement national youth and education policies.

BARGAD’s research study “National Survey of Student Politics, 2008” has been widely hailed as the largest consultative study on students’ political participation and positively reviewed by national and international analysts. It was also the topic of many TV talk shows and authors’ interviews.