His ship has sailed in

By JONATHAN KOH
A LONG-awaited opportunity to begin a career in a currently demanding field in the country has crawled right into the palm of a youth.
“As I walked onto the verandah, I was greeted by a church colleague. I headed towards the door. I could not hear clearly the words he muttered but my ear could only catch the part where he mentioned scholarship,” said the young man.
He could not take another step but took a seat beside the man. That was when it all unfolded.
“I thought to myself, this could be an opportunity to pursue a career that I have been dreaming and longing for,” he said.
Ansgar Value, 23, from Madang, is among 15 others who will be travelling to Australia on a six-month technical scholarship programme sponsored by the Madang government in partnership with the Madang Catholic Archdiocese.
Young Value’s education began at Jomba Primary School within the vicinity of the New Town area, and a mile away from home.
After completing Grade eight, Value went on to Good Sheppard Lutheran Secondary School outside Madang town.
“A K5 bus fee to and from the school was what I endured during these two years but that rewarding for me as an individual,” he said.
Goroka was the next place the young man visited to complete the final chapters of his high school education.
“Did my Grades 11 and 12 at the Goroka Grammar School located within the heart of the town. The experience was heartwarming,” said Value.
The thought of venturing into the technical field has never slipped away from the young man’s mind despite falling back from the formal system.
“I enrolled at the Flexible Open Distance Education (Fode) and upgraded my grades to meet the requirements of taking up studies in a technical field,” he said.
Value joined Digicel PNG and worked as a salesperson and a customer service representative while studying at the Madang Fode centre.
“My time with Digicel is worthy. I learnt a lot about the field of my interest and also picked up some ideas about doing business as well. On occasions, I travelled with technicians to fix towers and even had some hands-on experience by assisting them,” he said.
Value said the news of the scholarship had caught him off guard but he was glad that he was ready and fit to take it.
“I am glad that I was able to meet the requirements with the help of Fode” he said.
Besides taking up their trades, the students will do part time work during their free time at local restaurants to cater for their allowances.
Value said he was thankful for the assistance provided by the government-church partnership as this would assist him and other youths as well to pursue their interests.
“I hope I will bring back some commonly requested souvenir,” Value said with a laught
He said Australia was a developed country and its education system would be a lot advanced and he hoped to do his best in absorbing as much knowledge and skills as possible so that he could contribute something to the development of the nation upon return and securing a job.
The group’s travel and other arrangements would be finalised after the Covid-19 lockdown emergency period ends.

•  Jonathan Koh is a Journalism student at Divine Word University in Madang.