Teachers, Education Dept urged not to leave any child out

PRIME Minister James Marape opened the fifth National Education Conference at the University of Goroka yesterday with a simple message for teachers: Do not leave any child out.
He expressed satisfaction on going to the University of Goroka for the first order of business after PNG turned 44-years-old because UOG was the premier teachers’ training institution that hosted important programmes for future generations.
He urged the Education Department not to leave any child out as children’s lives were most important.
He wants the educators to identify each child’s talent and develop his or her identified talent to make every child going to school reach full potential.
Marape said every high and secondary school should have a Flexible Open Distant Education (FODE) next to it to allow students who could not continue in the formal system to enrol and catch up with other continuing students.
“Education Department should design systems to develop every child’s hidden talents, every child is given fair chance. FODE centres must be built close to every existing school to give every child excess to quality education,” he said.
“After September 16, 2019, wok mas start (work should begin).
“There is no better place to start in education in PNG, the success in education for PNG must start at the University of Goroka, it was a deliberate act of choice to come here at UOG.
“The statement is to state that ‘work should start’. I as your chief servant, from prime minster down to public servants, including teachers, we consume 60 per cent to 70 per cent of the national budget in current and recurrent expenditures to keep the public service machinery working.”
Marape said every public servant should analyse how they contributed to the nation and what was his or her next level of contribution.
“It gives me great pleasure to come to this conference where education sector plays a pivotal role in the ‘take back PNG’ strategy.”
Marape told students about his Government’s school fee loan scheme. He said they could get loan and repay over many years.
“However, parents will be engaged into the agriculture sector to grow the economy of the country, when economy picks up, there will be money to give school fee loans as there will be no free handouts,” he said.
UOG chancellor Joseph Sukwianomb and vice-chancellor Prof Musawe Sinebare welcomed Marape and his delegation, which included Communication and Energy Minister Rainbo Paita, Eastern Highlands Governor Peter Numu, Daulo MP Pogio Ghate, Henganofi MP Robert Atiayafa, Henry Ame, Benny Allan and Education secretary Dr Uke Kombra.