Minister Niningi commended

I COMMEND Minister for Higher Education Research Science Technology (DHERST) Pila Niningi for spearheading the move to have all post-secondary education institutions in the country to be commissioned.
In PNG there is only one education system.
The DHERST is the bona fide established national department, as stipulated under the Higher Education General Provision Act 2014, to coordinate and administer the activities of all higher education institutions in the country.
This transition will ensure that all higher education institutions are brought under the ambit of the DHERST and streamline an elaborate higher education system in the country.
It is also in line with the Government’s 100-day plan which seeks to remove bottlenecks, duplications of effort and cut public sector costs.
However, coordination efforts between DHERST and other departments should continue to be strengthened to support individual sector plans and controls.
For instance, there should be a consistent dialogue between DHERST and the Department of Health, to ensure that the number of scholarships awarded to new intakes and continuing students in nursing colleges are sufficient to support the forecasted needs of the health sector.
At this juncture, I see the PNG economy is tuned for a great transition.
Before that is realised, I urge the Government to create more employment opportunities or cushion out imbalances in the labour market.
This is so that the economy can be able to attain the enormous opportunities in terms of human resource that will be made available by the new transition at the higher education level in the country.

Mike Haro