Transcript
DINA AYONDA: We have high school students, we have college students, we have university students and we even have those who are willing to go for their Masters in New Zealand and they're preparing themselves for pre-Masters programme.
JOHNNY BLADES: When did it start, this programme?
DA: It actually started a log time ago. I think it started in 2009, but it was not this massive. So it started with a very small number of students and there was a programme called 1000 Doctors for Papua that started in the previous government, but then Mr Enembe looked at this as an opportunity for us to boost the education quality because we're struggling with the quality of our education system back at home. So this way we can boost the quality of our people by sending them overseas and then they can come back to Papua and start helping us with developing the province. Meanwhile, we are trying to improve the education system back at home as well. So we do both at the same time.
JB: How is the this programme helping the education system back in Papua?
DA: At the moment we are thinking about the practical way how we can come back and help us, because we're thinking that this is one idea: they may come back and then start up an internship in our research institution because we've got one. And another thing we were thinking about was putting them in companies and even to schools where they can... it's like their community development stages after they finish up their education overseas and they can contribute back to the people.
JB: How do you think they're going, having experienced New Zealand, are their studies going OK?
DA: Yeah, so I've been receiving amazing feedback from the schools it's just exceptional... These two girls in Nelson Aviation College, they are the two top-notch students at the college. Everyone praised them for what they do in their classes, the theory, the flying, everything. They say that they work so hard they try to maintain their achievements and then they do well. (Papuan students) in high schools as well. It's just amazing watching them growing so much in New Zealand.
