Minister: Invest in higher education to empower nation

MINISTER for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology David Arore yesterday outlined his immediate tasks to his staff in Port Moresby.  
“Education is a driving force of the 21st century,” Arore said.
He said he would like to see a revolution in higher education during his second term as a parliamentarian and the minister responsible.
“If we are to change this country’s mindset and prepare it for ‘take-off development’, I would urge parliament to massively invest in higher education, invest in technical colleges, universities and in people empowerment,” he said.
“The time for talking is over.
“Now it is time to put our money where development matters the most and that is the district level throughout the country.”
Speaking during a welcome luncheon with his staff at Mutual Rumana, Arore said he would ensure each district had a technical, vocational and university centre so that the “grassroots” were empowered.
“Education delivered to a generation in Papua New Guinea can be our pathway out of poverty,” he said.  
“It becomes the engine room of ideas, of innovation, of imagining a different national future.”
Arore said when a province, through its districts invested in education, it provided structural benefits to the country across the board in governance, productivity, health, and gender-equality.
That, he said, would unlock the full potential of Papua New Guinea.
He said he was grateful for his reappointment by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill. 
“The foundation for meaningful economic development is a massive injection of capital into education,” he said.
“It is imperative that the government, through the ministry, arrest the declining quality of higher and technical education.”
Arore said he would strive to ensure challenges were addressed and the system was able to provide the human resources and knowledge required to drive the country into becoming a middle-income economy by 2030.