Company to help with payment of Fode students’ fees

OK Tedi Development Foundation (OTDF) will be helping about 450 students from the mine affected villages in Western to enrol at the Flexible Open Distance Education (Fode) this year by paying their fees and meeting operational costs, says an official.
Fode and inclusive education first assistant secretary Andrew Angobe said OTDF, as a registered study centre since 2019, had been collecting fees and meeting the cost of the satellite centres, but after the recent agreement, they will meeting the full fees and operational costs.
Speaking during the agreement signing on Friday which recognised OTDF as a partner to Fode, Angobe said they will only print materials in Port Moresby and send them to the 10 satellite centres.
Students were enrolling to do full correspondence and upgrade at Tabubil, Ningerum, Alambak, Bosset, Kaviananga, Kasa, Nakaku, Tapila, Kawiyapo and Daru.
OTDF executive manager Andrew Mari said Fode did not have enough trained personnel at the province and district level, as well as not enough building and information technology infrastructures due to limited funding.
“Our aim is to increase access to quality and affordable education, providing second-chance opportunity to students who dropped out of the conventional education system,” Mari said.
Angobe said since 2019, Fode helped about 4,000 students who entered various tertiary institutions and were employed, contributing to human resource development in the province.
Fode principal Anthony Rayappan said they will ensure all materials were printed on time and sent to the students.
“We must work together to increase the literacy rate of the people,” Rayappan said.
“The three-year agreement sets out the terms and conditions under which OTDF and Fode will jointly undertake to deliver Fode programmes in Western.”