Aspiring young PNG leaders announced by Acting Prime Minister
Last Friday, 16 extraordinary young women and men with bright visions for Papua New Guinea’s future were set on their leadership journey by an esteemed group of leaders, including Acting Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Hon. Davis Steven, Australian High Commissioner, Bruce Davis and Chairman of the Motu Koita Assembly, Dadi Toka.
The Archer Leaders Program, now in its 10th year and operated by international development NGO, Kokoda Track Foundation (KTF), announced its 2020 Archer Leaders at a reception hosted by KTF partner Airways Hotel, Port Moresby. This exceptional cohort of final-year tertiary students is about to embark on an intensive, experiential year-long leadership development journey.
In his remarks to the group, the Acting Prime Minister reflected on the importance of investing in the development of a new generation of young leaders in PNG, noting that after a long and difficult two-week Parliament sitting, it was a warm and welcome relief to come and meet the Archer Leaders. He commented that the Prime Minister, who he was representing, would have been very proud to have been there to witness the young leaders and the important work of KTF across the country. He also noted that investing in education and leadership are the most important things for PNG.
The 2020 Archer Leaders are:
Peterson Mathius - UPNG, Law
Keren Mahabi - UPNG, Banking & Finance
Elizabeth Guka - UPNG, Journalism
Valisha Pala - UPNG, Environmental Science
James Lunge - UPNG, Law
Perry Koninda - UPNG, Medicine
Conscilliah Menda - Divine Word University, Medicine
John Robert Villegas - Unitech, Civil Engineering
“Now in its 10th year, the Archer Leaders Development program is finding and fostering a new generation of young leaders” said Dr Genevieve Nelson, CEO of KTF. “We are absolutely delighted to once again be taking on a journey a cohort of Leaders who have strong visions for their nation, who are committed to social justice and change, and who have demonstrated resilience, passion, and hope for themselves, their communities and the broader nation.”
The eight 2019 Archer Leaders also graduated from their year-long leadership development program at the ceremony. “Being an Archer Leader has been nothing less than a life experience. I am thankful to KTF for this amazing opportunity that has not only aided in my leadership development but the experiences gained through this program have also helped me along my career journey” said Soynna Suwae, 2019 Archer.
The Archer Leaders Program is a nation-wide program open to all final-year tertiary students across PNG. Program recipients participate in mentoring, tuition and boarding fees, educational and professional development resource support, work experience, community projects, and a leadership exchange to Australia. The program is generously co-funded by the Fred P Archer Trust and Wafi-Golpu Joint Venture.
The function also celebrated KTF’s achievements in the past year, including the completion of year 10, 11 and 12 studies by 200+ students at KTF’s Flexible Open Distance Education (FODE) colleges in Kokoda and Balimo; providing tailored professional development to teacher trainers from across the country; illuminating the entire Kokoda Track catchment region, installing households lighting and energy systems onto over 1,000 houses and 80 community facilities; opening a health centre in Alola village to join the 12 already operated by KTF; building women’s business enterprises producing and selling sustainable female hygiene packs to women and girls in their community; and delivering specialist health training to community health workers in the vital areas of eye health and maternal and neo-natal care.
KTF also took the opportunity to announce an exciting new initiative, developing the Motu Koita FODE Centre in the coming months in partnership with Chairman Toka and the Motu Koita Assembly.
