PNG Community Development Workers Standards Reviewed

Community Development Workers (Left-Right) Madeleine
Matutu, Desmond Pak and Henry Kavana  in group discussion
during the National Standards Workshop last month.

THE PNG Community Development Workers Association is working towards reviewing and finalising the National Occupational Skills Standards to guide and accredit Community Development workers nationwide.

These standards were developed by members of the Industrial Technical Panel (ITC) to improve skills of community development workers under PNG Occupational Skills Standard Project (POSSP) in 2009.  This assistance was made available through AusAID funded Community Development Scheme and continued through to the Democratic Governance Program - Transition Phrase (DGTP)-  preceding programs to the current Strongim Pipol Strongim Nesen Program. 

The ITC is made up of Community development workers from the civil society organisations headed by the Chairperson Steven Pesto, Merilyn Gairo, Simon Passingan, Dr Mark Solon, Elisabeth Tongne, Wesley Watt, Justin Kehatsin, Naomi Yupae, Robert Nugue, Beno Kamewo and Arthur Geno. 

A national workshop held on March 27-29, 2012 at Sogeri Lodge outside Port Moresby facilitated by Rebecca Robinson, a short term advisor with SPSN, saw the attendance of nine senior community development workers, the National Apprenticeship and Trade Testing Board (NATTB) Deputy Director Arthur Geno and SPSN Staff.

The objective of the workshop was to review existing assessment instruments and structure and the inclusion of cross-cutting issues that maybe relevant to the Standards.

Recommendations from this workshop will be tabled at from the next  ITC meeting and once approved will be then subjected to the National Apprenticeship and Trade Testing Board (NATTB) endorsement before it can be adopted.

These efforts are part of the Australian Government’s AU$100,000 grant to PNG Community Development Workers Association to provide capacity building for its members to enhance community development in PNG.

 The funding made available through the SPSN program’s component five activities to provide grants and awards to capacity build SPSN grants recipients or partners that work with SPSN to deliver positive results in community development.

For more information contact SPSN Capacity Development Coordinator Lucinda Kisip on email: info(AT)spsnpng.com