Public servants return after APEC training

 TWO public servants have returned from overseas training to help preparations for the APEC leaders’ meeting in Port Moresby in 2018.

Ingrid Kuman and Fredrick Tamarua, both 25, completed Australian-funded placements at the APEC secretariat in Singapore under the economic and public sector programme.

They will be responsible for logistics and policy preparations for high-level APEC meetings including the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Port Moresby in November 2018.

Kuman, from the PNG Tourism Promotion Authority, and Tamarua, from the Department of Justice and Attorney-General, were the first Papua New Guineans to be placed with the agency that coordinates and supports the work of APEC and its 21-member economies.

The pair were briefed by past programme directors how to deliver a successful APEC by ensuring that meetings run smoothly and policy proposals are properly developed.

“At the secretariat, you have a bird’s eye-view of everything that’s going on,” Tamarua said.

“We’ve come back with the knowledge on how to put together policy concept notes, and the process they go through, which we can apply to our own sectors.”

They will work with the PNG APEC secretariat to support engagement with APEC committees, including the senior officials steering committee on economic technical cooperation.