Student data vital

 EVERY student from Southern Highlands studying at universities will be included in a provincial human capital investment data, according to Governor William Powi.
“We are trying to consolidate our statistics of human capital capacity to weigh our strengths to build more on and make Southern Highlands develop. It is through education that the province will develop,” he said.
Powi paid the University of Goroka on Wednesday tuition fees for 160 Southern Highlands students there.
He briefed the students on what his plans for the province regarding human resource development.
Powi said the provincial government wanted to keep track of the progress of every student every year.
“We would like monitor how many students are graduating this year and in what discipline and how many are doing first, second, third and fourth years,” he said.
“With the necessary information, we will be in a better position to allocate money to support them and create employment opportunities for them.”
The provincial government had allocated K2 million to assist students in tertiary institutions this year.
Southern Highlands Students Association president Presley Ipe thanked Powi and the province for the assistance.
He welcomed the initiative to establish partnership with the universities and recruit the best students from Southern Highlands to work in their province.
“The new approach you embark on will help in a big way to help Southern Highlands grow,” he said.