Big Pat

 

STATE FAILS HIDDEN VALLEY SCHOOL CHILDREN

Some of the children from the NAKUWI villages.

BY JOAN BAILEY in LAE

THE future education of children from the mine impacted villages of the Hidden Valley is in a limbo.

Over 3000 students attending various institutions – from primary schools to colleges and universities – may be forced to withdraw because their school fees have not been met by the mine developer under the Future Generation Fund established by the MOA for mine operation.

The school children are all from the NAKUWI communities of Nakuwi, Kwembu and Nauti.

However, the mine operator says the fault is with the PNG Government which has failed to set up a trust account to hold the school fee funds.

In a statement, Morobe Consolidated Goldfields (MCG) emphasized that the Future Generation Trust Fund (FGTF) was to be established by the State as agreed under the 2005 Memorandum of Agreement relating to the Hidden Valley Gold Project.

Under the 2005 MOA, the State was required to establish a trust account to be known as the “Nakuwi Future Generations Trust” for the purpose of providing “for the education of the future generations of the respective landowners”.

Despite repeated requests from MCG, the State has not yet established the FGTF, the statement said.

Unitech first year geographical information system student Naomi Benny from Winima village in Lae said she was the last student to be registered at the university.

Ms Benny said her parents were working but having other siblings attending various educational institutions; it has been a struggle for her parents to pay school fees for all of them.

“My parents are landowners of the mine but I don’t see any school fee assistance from the mine when I started schooling until now am at university.

“We were informed that our Nakuwi Association has met mining authorities last year in Port Moresby including the developer where it was agreed to have 50 percent of our future generation funds released for our school fees this year,” Ms Benny said.

However, Ms Benny said this was not released affecting many students who are forced out of school because their parents are subsistence farmers or are unemployed and cannot meet the fees charged.

She appealed to the mine management to release the funding because their land has been given for mining and they have the right to this money for their school fees.

Another student Clement Limsen from Nauti village attending Markham Road Primary School in Lae said six of them attended Markham Road and are in class but are yet to pay their K350 school fees.

Mr Limsen said they were given until end of term one to pay up and they are hoping that funds can be released by the mine towards their school fees.