Engineering students visit to help on roads

By LUKE KAMA
THREE Papua New Guinean engineering students are back in the country from China to help inspect and supervise road construction work in Port Moresby.
They are Ai Iati, from Abau in Central; Tony Gorogo, from Kairuku in Central; and Max Isaac, from Western Highlands; who are doing Bachelor of Engineering courses, majoring in harbour and coastal engineering, at Hohai University in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. They have been in China since 2015 and are due to graduate in July next year.
The scholarship programme is offered by China Harbour Engineering Company Limited (Chec) and covers all expenses including travel, accommodation, meals, pocket allowances, course materials and hands-on training in some of the projects undertaken by Chec in PNG and across the world.
Gorogo said the scholarship was unique and they were “very pleased and grateful” for the opportunity.
“Initially there were five of us but two had left along the way due to medical issues and three of us have made it through and we look forward to graduating in July next year,” he said.
He said the scholarship was a five-year programme where one year was dedicated to learning the Chinese language.
Isaac said their qualification would be the first of its kind by Papua New Guineans and because they now spoke fluent Chinese they could act as translators for Chinese engineers working in the country. The students return to China after a month.