Opportunity of a lifetime

By PETER ESILA
AN 18-year-old from remote Oksapmin in the Telefomin district of West Sepik, will study in China, thanks to a Chinese government scholarship.
Caleb Frank, along with 25 other Papua New Guineans, received their scholarship at a reception hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Port Moresby on Friday.
“I am thankful for such a golden opportunity,” Frank told The National.
Frank did all is schooling in Oksapmin and in the last two years in Aitape.
He was the dux while doing science at the St Ignatius Secondary School in Aitape in 2016 and applied for mechanical engineering at the University of Technology but was not selected.
“I was disappointed when not selected and was looking for ways to get in,” he said.
He leant of the scholarship through his brother and applied for one in February.
“When this scholarship came in, it was sent from heaven. I was so happy that God  made a way for me to come in.”
Frank will spend the first year studying Chinese language at the Tongji University in Shanghai and will spend four years studying aeronautical engineering in Nanchang Hangkong University in the Jiangxi province.
“I would like to thank God almighty first, my family for financially supporting me and never gave up on me, the people at the Department of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology and the least the Chinese government for providing this scholarship package for Papua New Guinea students.”
Chinese Ambassador Xue Bing said over the last 14 years about 300 PNG students received scholarships from his government.
“Many of them have come back to the country, working in different departments and organisations and played an important role in the national construction and for the promotion of friendship between China and Papua New Guinea,” Bing told the recipients at the farewell reception at the Chinese Embassy.