Lihir school helps itself with uniforms

 A TEN year wish for an elementary school on Lihir Island, New Ireland,  has been realised.

The wish was made by the board and teachers of the Lipuko Elementary School in 2001 for the students to have their own school uniforms.

The students were proud recipients of full uniform sets that cost about K6,000, paid for by the school from money collected from fees over the years.

The uniforms were locally tailored by a women’s group from Londolovit village.

The teacher-in-charge Christine Anap said the delivery of the new uniforms really boosted the moral of the 66 students in the school, which is located in one of the mine affected villages of the Lihir Gold project.

Anap said with prep, elementary 1 and 2, the uniforms signified the ongoing commitment by the board of management, parents and citizens in making Lipuko Elementary School one of the best on the island.

She added that the new uniforms would help students see the value of education from an early age.

Describing the school as a model on the island, Anap said she believed the school’s achievement should be a motivation for other schools.

Lipuko ward member and chairman for education in the Nimamar LLG Martin Zanayes’s involvement in the school’s development had been an example of a leader’s commitment and support, Anap said.

Of the 26 elementary schools on Lihir, less than half of them had permanent facilities such as those at Lipuko.