A timely boost for Buk bilong Pikinini

The founder and vice-chair of Papua New Guinea educational organisation Buk bilong Pikinini (BbP), Anne-Sophie Hermann, has applauded as “especially timely” the donation of $A 100,000 by an Australian foundation just in time for International Literacy Day on the 8th of September.

She said that the grant from the Foundation for Development Cooperation will enable BbP provide more of its “much-in-demand” School Library Kits – as schools across Papua New Guinea are currently operating without a library or reading books for the students. There are 460 schools waiting on BbP’s list to receive books.

The donation will also, Ms Hermann said, enable the organisation to hire a BbP Nutrition Education Officer and to develop further materials to help implement a new Nutrition Education program for students and their families.

“This gift is timely for two reasons,” she said.

“First, because we have just finished our Literacy Week celebrations, which featured the launch of our Nutrition Education program.

“Second, because the World Bank has recently chosen to highlight the great needs for improved education generally in PNG.”

The bank’s latest Economic Update is titled: “Invest in your Children.” The bank says: “There is an education crisis in PNG.,” adding that by the age of five, 45 per cent of PNG children “are stunted by malnutrition” – the fifth highest rate in the world, affecting brain development, hindering learning, and risking lifelong impacts.

The bank recommends “expanding quality early childhood education by allocating appropriate funding, providing technical support, and promoting collaboration among donors and stakeholders.”

Since being founded in 2007, BbP has established Library Learning Centres in vulnerable communities, at which they offer inclusive one-year Early Childhood Education programs – aligned with the PNG Department of Education’s official standards - to five-year-old children free of charge as well as library services at its Library Learning Centres for students of all age-groups. Thanks to donations of good quality or new books from publishing houses, schools and private individuals across Australia - wishing to support PNG children with their education, the organisation has also restocked about 100 school libraries every year with its School Library Kits.

“We try to do a lot with a little,” said Ms Hermann.

The FDC was founded in 1990 by Australian Bill Taylor, who had worked for the United Nations Development Program for more than 20 years. It has played a prominent role in recent years in enhancing the work of financial inclusion institutions in Asia and the Pacific islands, especially through organising networking.

The mission of the FDC is “to harness and leverage the collective skills, knowledge and resources of organisations from across the public, private, community and academic sectors to reduce the incidence of poverty and promote equitable growth in the Asia Pacific region.”

Buk bilong Pikinini (BbP) has an office in Canberra, where it coordinates the collection of children’s books from across Australia and financial support for the organisation. Donations can be made via the webshop https://bukbilongpikinini.charity ,where donors can make a donation or give the gift of a School Library Kit.