By EKONIA PENI
EWASSE village in Bialla district of West New Britain province has become a significant location in the National Government’s development plan.
It was nominated for the first pilot project for the Community Learning Development Center (CLDC).
The Ewasse CLDC was officially launched on December 14, 2007 by Community Development minister Dame Carol Kidu.
Dame Carol will be long remembered by Ewasse villagers for her visit because she was the first government minister since Independence to make an official visit to the village.
The people had the privilege to meet and hear words of wisdom from Dame Carol Kidu about good governance and real community development.
“Ewasse village was nominated to be the first for the CLDC roll out program in West New Britain because of the existing partnership the village has with Hargy Oil Palm,” Dame Carol said when launching the program.
She said that in order for the CLDC program to succeed, the community must be mindful of four factors: the need for good governance and transparency; preparedness to learn both academically and at community level after formal education has been completed; making money at the community level and spending money well on things that will improve life in local communities; and for the community to ensure a safe, secure and sustainable environment.
Dame Carol said that if Papua New Guinea was to develop and become a wealthy nation, the national government and provincial governments (West New Britain Provincial Government in this case) must work hand in hand.
“The community must also invest a lot on children who are our most valuable resource and there must be a strong emphasis on the bottom-up approach from the villages and communities, to the provincial and national levels if we are to build a strong country.”
“So be happy and be strong with your Community Learning Development Centre”, urged Dame Carol.
The CLDC is part of the government’s new policy known as the “Integrated Community Development Policy” a policy for the people.
The implementation of the CLDC at Ewasse will now encourage a concerted effort of the Hargy Oil Palm, education, agricultural and health officers and local level government officers, community, village and church leaders to ensure it succeeds.
The Ewasse CLDC is among four of the first CLDCs to be opened in the country. The first two were opened in Simbu province- the first for the Highlands region and the other in Sandaun Province, the first for the Momase region.
The fourth one yet to be opened will be in Oro province the first for the Southern region which has been delayed due to the flood disaster in the province.
As minister responsible, Dame Carol has made it her business and priority to be the front person in promoting the CLDC and the government’s new policy.
Her visit on December 14caused every village and community activity at Ewasse to come to a standstill as the village people provided the traditional colour and respect normally accorded to dignitaries.
The traditional respect went to its pinnacle when Dame Carol was donned with the traditional head dress “the sapepe” which is normally reserved under custom only to the first born, male or female, in the family.
But as the first government minister to visit the village and given her rank among the government authorities in the province on that day, Dame Carol automatically deserved to be fitted with the ‘sapepe’ in the presence of government officials including the Community Development secretary Joseph Klapat.
“Wai na despela meri ino prai minista blong kantri?”(Why was this lady not the prime minister of the country?), a question muttered by one of the old men as he listened to what Dame Carol was saying about the need for more community participation in development rather than waiting on government handouts all the time.
The only other spotlight on Ewasse village since the 1960s has been the widely publicised ‘School That Fell From The Sky’- the Airmen’s Memorial School that was built by former US Air Force pilot Major Fred Hargesheimer.
And while that school has provided the province and nation with a number of highly educated people, the Ewasse CLDC should go further by providing essential training at the community level on community governance - proper management of community affairs for the benefit of its members, community learning- on the skills and ideas of modern and good traditions to improve community living, community economics- on opportunities to increase income and how to spend it wisely for community benefit and community environment- on building safe, healthy and sustainable environment.
Dame Carol may be a foe to her political opponents, but as Minister for Community Development visiting Ewasse village, she was loved by women for her down-to-earth talk on good community living and admired by men for her intelligence in the male dominated National Parliament.


 

Previous | Back to Top | Next